Putmans's belief that his side was sure of victory was not just a fantasy, because there were as many as six warships in the support fleet with the same combat power as the "Hector".
Each battleship is equipped with twelve to sixteen 24-pound guns, and more than ten 18-pound guns and 12-pound guns each. Its firepower is far superior to the Ming army's warships.
In previous naval battles, a single "Hector" was able to enter uninhabited territory, making dozens of sampan-like boats unable to stop it. So what if six ships launched a strong attack together?
Even a speedboat with a much smaller displacement than the "Hector" has better firepower than the large ships under Zheng Zhilong's command. It only takes a single salvo to destroy dozens of ships.
There are six "Hector"-like ships in the fleet and eight thousand-ton "return ships". The main task of these "big ships" is not to fight, but to transport troops.
In addition, there were twenty-five speedboats and thirty-eight armed merchant ships. Even the weakest armed merchant ship can turn the Ming army's battleships into a burning bonfire.
Putmans believed that even if Zheng Zhilong had assembled up to a thousand sampans, he would only need to fire at them twenty or thirty times with efficient volleys to defeat them and scatter them.
People in the East, whether they were Ming people, Japanese people, or Kimchi people, successive monarchs were obsessed with managing the mainland, but they didn't know that managing the ocean could bring huge profits.
In this regard, the Dutch are already at the forefront of the world. Although their land area is small, they can still seize huge wealth from maritime trade every year by virtue of their superior maritime dominance.
As one of the rewards of operating the ocean, the Dutch have gained extremely rich experience in naval warfare. Whether they are dealing with the Spanish, the English, or the Danes, they can be invincible.
The enemy Putmans faced this time was a friend many years ago. They were very familiar with each other. Through business contacts, they also spoke highly of each other.
After Putmans' term expired, Zheng Zhilong also wrote to the Governor of Batavia, Hendrik Brower, hoping to extend his old friend's term.
Because they are worried that with the new chief taking office, misunderstandings will occur due to unfamiliarity between the two parties. But in the face of the company's regulations, this doesn't change anything.
As the East India Company was not satisfied with the existing trade situation and was eager to use its maritime advantages to put pressure on the Ming Empire, this personal relationship was wiped out with the outbreak of the "Battle of Liaoluo Bay".
Putmans will never forget the defeat in the last naval battle. This was the first time he was defeated by the opponent since he commanded the fleet.
He originally thought that he would hate this for the rest of his life, but he never thought that there would be a chance to turn defeat into victory. Although the interval was longer, it finally came, and this time the fleet that the company gave him to command was much stronger than last time.
The council gave Putmans three tasks. First, he had to relieve the siege of the castle of Geranze while the defenders were still resisting. Otherwise, the castle must be recovered.
To this end, the company asked the fleet to carry a full regiment (with 2 battalions and 22 companies), totaling about 1,100 soldiers, all of whom were well-trained and experienced mercenaries.
Secondly, to defeat Zheng Zhilong's fleet, one must either severely damage his fleet or destroy most of his main ships. Only in this way can Zheng Zhilong's covetousness for the Dayuan area and even Formosa Island be cut off.
Zheng Zhilong was a minion of the Ming Empire, and the East India Company was the sharp spear for Dutch expansion. If Zheng Zhilong's behavior hindered the development of the company, then he must be made aware of the mistakes he made, and if there is an opportunity, "help" him Correct the error!
Finally, and the highest goal of this operation, was to force the Ming Empire to open ports on the southeast coast, with at least one port in each province.
Guangdong is Guangzhou or Panyu, Fujian is Xiamen or Quanzhou, Zhejiang is Hangzhou or Wenzhou, and South Zhili is Jiangyin or Haimen. If possible, it would be better if Dutch merchant ships could go north to Tianjin.
In addition to still doing business with Zheng Zhilong in Fujian, in the other three places, Dutch businessmen can completely get rid of Zheng Zhilong's fetters and directly negotiate business with partners in the Ming Empire.
If the Ming Empire still wants to be as stubborn as last time and resist the olive branch extended by the East India Company, then the fleet equipped with more than 1,500 artillery pieces will "help" the other side think about how to solve this problem!
Through his understanding of the Ming Empire, Putmans believed that the empire's hundreds of thousands of army troops were probably not equipped with the same number of heavy artillery.
His fleet has the ability to destroy a coastal city in a short time, which is a powerful advantage that even Zheng Zhilong's fleet cannot possess.
Those seemingly solid cities are completely vulnerable to heavy artillery weighing more than 18 pounds. After several volleys, they can be turned into a mess full of holes.
"How long until we reach the chief executive?"
"Report to Commander, based on the current speed, it will take about ten hours!"
"good!"
"Report! A Junk ship was spotted ahead!"
"Report! Another Junk ship found!"
"Report! Red fireworks found!"
"That's a signal flare! Order all ships in the fleet to prepare for battle!"
"yes!"
The appearance of the signal flare completely confirmed Putmans, who was doubting the identity of the ship ahead. It was definitely not a sign of goodwill or welcome to him.
The only possibility is that Zheng Yiguan has deployed reconnaissance eyes and ears, or lookout posts, which can give him long-distance early warning.
Putmans's guess was very correct. The only slight deviation was that this was a lookout post set up by Zheng Zhilong's younger brother Zheng Zhifeng.
The outermost reconnaissance ship is about a ten-hour voyage south of Dajuan, and the ships are selected with the fastest speed. This way, it is easy to escape when Hongyi is found, and it is easy to retreat when a storm is coming.
"Fourth Master! Look!"
"Blow the trumpet! Send out the flare! Get ready to meet the enemy! Hong Yi is coming! Let the little ones cheer up. Behind us are the tens of thousands of men and horses of the uncle. We must fight to the death to stop Hong Yi!"
Zheng Zhifeng looked at the red fireworks appearing in the distant sky and began to deal with it calmly. He had been preparing for this moment for a long time.
No matter how many Hongyi ships come to rescue this time, they cannot let one pass by.
Once the eldest brother's troops are bombarded by Hongyi in an open position, they will surely suffer heavy losses.
"Uncle! Fourth Master has sent out a flare!"
"...Give me the order to withdraw the entire army to the other side immediately and set up camp in the woods first!"
"yes!"
Zheng Zhifeng had already ordered three reconnaissance ships to be deployed in one direction every hour of the voyage, so now a series of signal flares appeared on the sea.
Zheng Zhilong was already annoyed with the lonely fortress in front of him that could not be conquered for a long time. When he saw the signal flare sent by his fourth brother, he understood that good things would not work and bad things would work.
Instead of looking forward to the day when the castle of Relanze was conquered, they looked forward to the reinforcements from the Hongyi troops!
It would be okay if the fourth brother could block it, otherwise we would have to make long-term plans.
Damn it Bolger!
Today, tens of thousands of troops have been besieging the Castle of Geranze for more than three months, and the results are still unsatisfactory.
Although hundreds of red barbarians were killed, wounded, and captured, the defenders were still trapped and fighting. Our own side suffered thousands of casualties due to illness and disease, and more than ten battleships were sunk.
The reason for the stalemate is that on the one hand, the fort is indeed very strong, and even a long-term bombardment with heavy artillery will not be effective.
On the other hand, there will be a strong storm in as short as ten days or as long as twenty days. At that time, the entire army will need to abandon the sandbank and withdraw to the other side.
In order to avoid being destroyed by the storm or being stranded in Qiantan, the fleet must retreat to Penghu Bay for shelter. When the storm passes, everything can start again...
It's okay to say that it really hurt like this two or three times, but since the siege of Relanze Castle, the army has come back and forth, struggling no less than ten times.
Not to mention the soldiers under Zheng Zhilong's command, even Zheng Zhilong himself was exhausted physically and mentally from the torture, and his temper was almost worn out.
It was originally supposed to be a quick battle, decided in one battle, but due to unfavorable conditions, it turned into a protracted and difficult battle.
The heavy artillery was mounted, and coconut shells were fired. Coconut shells almost covered the entire ground in the castle.
With a favorable wind, the pungent stench can be smelled a mile away...
But so what?
The tough and buttercup Bolger just refused to surrender!
If this battle lasts from summer to winter, or even into the next year, even if our side can win in the end, it will only be a miserable victory.
In his spare time, Zheng Zhilong wanted to order his soldiers who were more idle than him to open up wasteland and farm in the nearby area.
It is possible to storm the castle, but the casualties will be very high.
Our side has more people who are good at sea warfare and fewer people who are good at land warfare. It is not worth fighting so hard.
Zheng Zhilong did not want to lose his elite troops for the sake of the imperial court. After all, the location of Jinshan was not yet known.
The only thing that comforted Zheng Zhilong was that his son Zheng Sen sent a letter from the capital, saying that everything was fine and that the prince was taking good care of him.
The letter said that there were many novel things in the capital that he had never seen in Xiamen, but he was too busy training and studying to take care of them.
The prince taught him a lot of knowledge, and he also benefited a lot from the novel training programs. He plans to learn more skills and strive to return as soon as possible so that he can apply what he has learned.
Zheng Zhilong felt that he had been ennobled as an earl, and he had achieved enough in this life. If he went further, he could only count on his son to shine.
It is a great blessing to be accepted as a disciple by the Crown Prince. When the Crown Prince ascends the throne, his son will become a minister who has made contributions to the throne.
I don’t dare to say too much. As long as he leads his troops and makes some achievements, surpassing himself as Zhenhai Bo, and then becoming a marquis, it won’t be a big problem.
But taking a step back, it would be too embarrassing if a father like himself commanded an army of tens of thousands and couldn't even take down a solitary fortress guarded by the red barbarians.
Zheng Zhilong had already sent an ultimatum to Bolger, but the other party ignored it and insisted on holding on until reinforcements arrived.
Before Zheng Zhilong could make up his mind and order the entire army to launch a strong attack, Hongyi's reinforcements were about to arrive and wanted to join the defenders.
Did our side first surround the enemy and then be counter-surrounded by the enemy's reinforcements? ? ?
This is an absolutely unacceptable result!
Zheng Zhilong had the intention to storm the castle, but then he thought that if his fourth brother could not withstand the Red Yi fleet, even if his own troops captured the castle, they would still be surrounded by the Red Yi fleet.
Once the naval battle is defeated, our fleet will have no choice but to withdraw to Penghu or even return to Xiamen. By then, won't the people occupying the castle become a lone army?
It is better to let the army go ashore first. The strength of the Hongyi reinforcements will definitely be less than our own. If the enemy dares to go ashore, we can use our strengths to avoid weaknesses and use our strength to annihilate them.
Otherwise, even if the Hongyi fleet rescues the defenders in the castle, the army can still use Dongfan Island. Instead of fighting to the end, our own fleet can supply the army from somewhere on the north side.
If you can beat me, fight, if you can't beat me, run away!
This is the traditional combat thinking of Zheng Zhilong and his men...
As for Xiamen, the most they can do is abandon the port. Hongyi simply does not have the strength to completely occupy Xiamen.
Without five thousand or even ten thousand soldiers, it is completely impossible to capture Xiamen and make it your own.
If only a thousand Red Yi were used to occupy Xiamen, the Zheng army rushing out from the interior would immediately surround the city as soon as the Red Yi fleet left.
Now it's Hongyi's turn to fight quickly, and our side can choose strategies and tactics as they like and have fun with Hongyi!
It turned out that Zheng Zhilong was very anxious, fearing that Hongyi's reinforcements would arrive.
When Hongyi's reinforcements really arrived, Zheng Zhilong was no longer in a hurry.
As long as the Hongyi fleet can be defeated, the defenders in the castle will know that it is impossible to defeat the Zheng army without the help of reinforcements, and they will most likely surrender.
Now it seems that the failure to capture the fort turned out to be a good thing for Zheng Jun.
Instead of Zheng's army being surrounded by the Red Yi fleet in the castle, let the Red Yi play a game of siege and reinforcements.
Why not wait for the Red Yi fleet to arrive, and even the castle and fleet will eat you up in one fell swoop!
This is an unprecedented gamble, the winner takes all, and the loser bears the consequences!
The current situation is such that there is no room for Zheng Zhilong to make compromises and concessions.
Anyway, starting a war with Hongyi has already offended Hongyi, so naturally there is no need to fight against Hongyi.
In the past, Zheng Zhilong was very afraid of Hongyi because the enemy's ships had strong guns and could roam the sea.
Now Zheng Jun has mastered advanced naval warfare skills and has new weapons that Hongyi has never equipped.
As long as the two are used properly by the fourth brother Zheng Zhifeng, even if Hongyi's warships are still very powerful, we still have a chance to defeat the stubborn enemy!
Let Bolger and his henchmen survive for a while first. This castle cannot be moved anyway. After defeating the Red Yi Fleet, the army will besiege the place again!
After receiving the support from his brother, Zheng Zhifeng's fleet has become very powerful on paper.
It has four Galen ships, eight Fengzhou ships, thirty-five Wuwei ships, forty-seven Big Bird ships, one hundred and forty Guangzhou ships, thirty-one Cangshan ships, and winter ships imitating Hongyi warships. There are thirty-five small boats and one hundred and twenty-five bird boats, for a total of four hundred and twenty-five.
Zheng Zhipeng's fleet is in charge of the Xiamen area. If it is transferred here, the strength of the entire fleet can be improved to a higher level, but now it seems that it is too late to live or die.
"Hiss... so many?"
Looking at the Hongyi fleet that often pulled out three columns on the sea, Zheng Zhifeng's men became a little worried.
Everyone knows that the Hongyi battleships are extremely powerful. One of them can be as powerful as twenty of our own.
This time the opponent is coming with great force, and the estimated number alone is no less than seventy or eighty ships.
"What are you afraid of? I have been living at sea for generations, how can I be afraid???"
Zheng Zhifeng naturally saw it with a telescope, but as the commander of the entire army, he naturally would not and could not be afraid of this old enemy.
"Pass my general's order, and the entire army will meet the enemy in horizontal formation. When the Hongyi battleship comes into range, use broadside firepower to attack it!"
"yes!"
