Zheng Zhi'ao had previously asked Zheng Zhilong to take the initiative because the red barbarian defenders in Relanzhe Castle did not dare to fight easily after the failed sneak attack.
Zheng Zhi'ao also found it completely unsatisfying to use mortars to fire coconut shells into the castle from the back slope, but he could not openly disobey Zheng Zhilong's order and storm the castle.
The two sides fought like this "you come and I don't go" for three months. Zheng Zhi'ao really couldn't stand it anymore. He heard that Hongyi reinforcements were about to arrive, so...
I saw another completely different kind of Hongyi. After losing seven battleships, they ran away in panic as if they had no attachment at all.
In comparison, Hongyi is much more cowardly than Liao Luowan at that time, and it can be seen that the momentum of fighting hard is completely the work of a group of women!
But looking at the situation in the battlefield waters, Zheng Zhi'ao felt a little strange. Looking around, most of them were the wreckage of his own warships and sailors waiting for rescue.
It is hard to imagine that this was the result of less than a hundred Hongyi warships. After meeting Zheng Zhifeng, Zheng Zhi'ao got the accurate figure. The opponent's fleet size was less than eighty ships.
Calculated in this way, Hongyi's combat power is naturally extraordinary, not much worse than a few years ago. This fierce battle left a very deep impression on Zheng Zhifeng.
Regardless of whether it is our own side or the Red Barbarians, whether alive or dead, they will all be salvaged, and the dead Red Barbarians will also be counted as the result of the battle.
After finishing cleaning up the battlefield and leading the remaining warships back to the shore, it was already after four o'clock in the afternoon.
Hearing that his fleet had returned triumphantly, Zheng Zhilong was naturally filled with joy and went to the beach to greet his two brothers.
After counting each ship, a total of 2,135 Hongyi people were captured, and about 70% of them were alive, which is not a small gain.
Using these 1,500 men as bargaining chips, plus the eight captured red barbarian warships, we should be able to conduct very efficient negotiations with the Dutch East India Company.
These warships have suffered varying degrees of damage, and in severe cases must be sent to the Xiamen Shipyard for repairs before they can exert their due combat effectiveness.
If the East India Company wanted to take it back, it could, but just like people, it had to pay money, otherwise neither the people nor the ship would be able to get it.
What is ridiculous is that when some captured captains saw that Zheng Zhilong could speak fluent Dutch, they accused Zheng Zhilong of betraying his trust and blatantly invading Dutch territories.
In response, Zheng Zhilong reprimanded, saying that you invaded our Ming Dynasty's territorial waters, killed our Ming Dynasty people, took away our Ming Dynasty property, and occupied our Ming Dynasty land. How shameless are you? You actually have the face to accuse us of protecting our country?
If your master is unwilling to redeem you, you should be prepared to mine until you die!
Anyway, now that the enemy who came to help has been repulsed, it means that the entire team is about to be obtained.
At that time, he will go north to meet the prince and get the location of the Qiongzhou gold mine.
You can go mining later. I don’t care for idlers!
Of course, before that, two good-performing guys can be sent to the Castle of Geranze to persuade Burg to surrender.
Even the reinforcements have been repulsed, how can this guy still insist on a goal?
"Vincent, what do you think?"
When facing the fellow Dutchmen who came to persuade them to surrender, Chief John van der Berg was still shocked by the news that the reinforcement fleet had been defeated by the enemy.
This meant either holding on for another three months until Batavia sent the second batch of reinforcements, or surrendering immediately. Anyway, no reinforcements would arrive in the short term.
It is unrealistic to expect Putmans to lead his fleet to the Dajuan area secretly and put down reinforcements on the other side, because the enemy's strength is twenty or thirty thousand.
How can we fight this battle?
All of Bolger's expectations were based on winning the naval battle. Only by winning the naval battle could the sea control the land and cooperate with the landing troops to repel the enemy forces besieging the Castle of Geranze.
"We are not short of food, we are short of troops, fruits and vegetables. It would be best if we can supplement it, otherwise, more and more people will lose their combat effectiveness due to nutritional problems. It used to be that they couldn't attack, but now they can't even protect themselves. It has dropped sharply. It is true that you want to continue to defend, but if you persist for another three months, I am afraid that the castle defenders will eventually lose their ability to defend."
Colonel Vincent Jansen, commander of the infantry regiment, no longer believed that his side could turn defeat into victory, and was tired of continuing to hold on to the strategy. He hoped to surrender to Zheng Zhilong as soon as possible.
If we continue to resist like this, everyone will be trapped to death in the end, but what benefits will they gain? Will the company treat them like heroes?
Since you can't get anything, why not surrender as soon as possible?
"You will be judged by the Council!"
This is what Bolger is most worried about. Maybe Zheng Zhilong will not do anything to him, but those indifferent animals in the Council will definitely find a scapegoat, and he is the best choice.
"Hmph! Judgment? To hell with him! I plan to take my people to serve the crown prince of the Ming Empire. At worst, I won't return to the Netherlands. What will the council do? Send a thousand soldiers to attack the capital of the Ming Empire? Plan? Are you going to commit suicide?"
Faced with the unresponsive and narrow-minded Council, Colonel Jansen did even more extreme things.
I don’t want to keep you here, I have my own place to keep you. If the prince can keep you, I will do it with the prince!
According to reports from captured defenders who came to persuade them to surrender, Zheng Zhilong would arrange for them to go to the capital if they did not want to go back.
It is also said that killing a Tatar can get a generous reward of two hundred taels of silver. After all, if you kill ten enemies, wouldn't you be able to retire directly?
After word spread at this time, many defenders were tempted, because they were originally mercenaries who did not value people's money.
Whichever employer is willing to pay a high price, they are willing to work for whomever, it is fair and reasonable, and there is no fraud!
If this price were placed on the European continent, I am afraid that mercenaries across the continent would be willing to serve the crown prince.
As long as there are enough silver rewards, the enemy's heads will naturally come rolling in!
Jansen said this with full confidence, he was very aware of the company's strength.
If we fight a naval battle, we may be able to defeat any opponent in the world.
But if it were to be a land battle, we would have to gather 5,000 people first!
Only one or two thousand soldiers are responsible for landing operations, which is really a disgrace!
No matter how powerful the mercenaries are, they can't defeat tens of thousands of opponents and a large number of cavalry.
How could the East India Company cause trouble to the crown prince of the Ming Empire without a naval battle?
Fishing out all the fish and shrimps along its coast? ? ?
Thinking about it this way, taking refuge with the crown prince is really a good way out.
Moreover, Jansen had done some research beforehand and found that most of the soldiers were willing to take the risk with him going north.
The greater the risk, the higher the profit. Everyone knows this. There are no fools among mercenaries.
As Zheng Zhilong said, one year of fighting is enough to last a lifetime.
Compared to the abominable practice of European employers who only distributed bread but not military pay, the Ming Crown Prince's kind deeds really made his subordinates extremely loyal.
"..."
He is indeed a mercenary with no bottom line!
Damn it!
Bolger was speechless for a moment and could only curse secretly in his heart.
Even if he was angry, he couldn't vent it, and he couldn't execute or remove Jansen from his military power, because all the mercenaries in the castle obeyed him.
It is true that Bolger was the highest officer here, but the defenders in the castle were not regular Dutch troops, but a group of mercenaries who had signed a contract.
No matter where in the world, as long as the situation goes wrong, mercenaries have the right to surrender directly to the enemy in exchange for a chance to survive.
It is easy to get a force that is not afraid of death. With one thousand silver coins per person, you can form a knight force.
If you don’t have money, don’t get involved with loyalty easily. Isn’t loyalty valuable?
"I understand that you don't want to surrender, but I have to think of a way out for my people, just like Beck!"
Jansen gave the example of Baker. Ever since this guy set sail from Taiyuan Bay with his fleet, no one has seen his shadow.
"Can't you just hold on for another month?"
Bolger asked in an almost pleading tone. He also knew that he had been separated from his subordinates, but he still wanted to give it one last try.
"Ten days at most, and the wounded soldiers, women and children must be sent out for treatment first to avoid further deaths!"
Janssen had had enough of this hellish torment and was suffering from anorexia due to the pervasive stench and the sight of squirming maggots everywhere.
Instead of surrendering now, it would be better to surrender immediately when you can't defeat them. Wouldn't this be equivalent to being disgusted by a group of pirates for three months in vain? How stupid!
"...Okay! It's only ten days, you can send these people out first!"
Bolger did not intend to bargain with the other party. If he said a few more words, he might cause dissatisfaction with the other party and even cause the defenders to mutiny directly.
Of the seventy-seven warships that came to the rescue this time, half of them were lost!
Did Putmans conduct this naval battle with his eyes closed?
Each Dutch warship, even an armed merchant ship, was equivalent to the combat effectiveness of twenty Ming warships.
As a result, more than thirty ships were sunk and destroyed by Zheng Yiguan in the first battle. If the captain had not said it himself, Bolger would not have believed it at all.
Even after hearing this result from a fellow villager, Berger still expressed doubts about it.
But the two captains no longer planned to stay here any longer, otherwise they would have to vomit bile.
Rather than saying this is a castle, it is better to say that this is a giant toilet full of stench!
An hour later, they came out with all the women, children, and wounded soldiers in the castle and surrendered.
Surrender can be regarded as a staged process. Bolger planned to throw the burden to Zheng Zhilong first and then make further calculations.
Moreover, there are additional conditions for surrender. The Dutch can surrender the Castle of Relanja to Zheng Zhilong, but they must take away all the property inside.
"What a beautiful thought!"
Zheng Zhilong sneered at Bolger's request. In view of his past friendship, he would allow the other party to take at most 30% of the total.
But the two captains who were the microphones no longer planned to go to that ghost place again. They definitely didn't want to be disgusted to death.
Zheng Zhilong could only send "substitutes". Anyway, there were plenty of Hongyi prisoners in hand, and there were many who were willing to go.
"No, at least 70%!"
After receiving the reply, Bolger did not think Zheng Zhilong's request was reasonable. On the contrary, these properties belonged to the company, and he had every reason to take them away.
"Whatever! I won't let you take away even one cent from me!"
Zheng Zhilong felt that Bolger was still having illusions, so he should use coconut bombs to clear his mind. There was plenty of time. Anyway, the siege had been going on for several months, not less than a few days.
The prince said that being kind to the enemy is cruel to oneself!
The army recovered a large number of troops and mobilized troops, which cost a lot of money and food, so they planned to capture the castle to replenish it.
Since you are greedy and want to take the stolen wealth and wealth as your own, let me get out of the castle!
On the tenth day, the unbearable Yang Sen led the remaining defeated soldiers in the castle and conditionally surrendered to Zheng Zhilong.
The condition of surrender is to let Zheng Zhilong serve as an introducer to introduce them to their future new employer, the Prince of Ming Dynasty.
Of course, Zheng Zhilong would not shirk this kind of business dealings and agreed wholeheartedly.
The mercenaries who had breathed the fresh air lay limply on the beach, not wanting to move except for taking a bath.
Thinking of the past life, it is simply an unbearable nightmare!
Zheng Zhilong also asked his men not to deliberately embarrass these prisoners, after all, they had paid for the coconut bombs for so long.
As long as you don't take the initiative to escape, it's easy to say, seafood is served every day, plus coconut!
However, many defenders felt like vomiting when they saw coconuts...
Bolger, his assistant David Cillessen, his translator He Bin, and his family were still staying in the gloomy castle.
Realizing that there was no other way out and no hope of holding on, he surrendered to Zheng Zhilong three days later.
At this point, Bolger stayed in the castle for 108 days!
At first, Zheng Zhilong offered quite generous surrender terms, but Bolger refused.
After repelling the red barbarians who came to help, Bolger unrealistically demanded to take away all the property.
When the dust finally settled, the senior officer could only take away his own head and that of his family.
This is only if the East India Company is willing to pay money to redeem the people, otherwise they will just stay in the prisoner of war camp!
"Brother! Don't forget to take pictures!"
"Yeah! That makes sense!"
A group of generals took a number of photos of large chunks of people's hearts with the Castle of Geranze, with the Ming and Zheng flags planted at the top of the city as the background, and they had to step on the Burg to take the photos...
Zheng Zhifeng also regretted that no one came to take photos of the naval battle with Putmans, otherwise such fierce battle scenes would have been immortalized.
This made Bolger, who was watching from the side, dumbfounded. When the photos were developed, Bolger was even more shocked and even called this "Oriental evil magic"!
Of course, Zheng Zhilong didn't understand the principle of taking pictures, and there was no need to explain to this guy. Let him see it just to show off the supreme glory of the Ming Empire.
Now that there is a photo studio in Xiamen and it is full of customers, Zheng Zhilong's camp naturally also has photographers. A certain prince sent these people here to record the outline of this battle.
But for Bolger and others, being exposed to such science fiction technology was undoubtedly a great stimulus. After the stimulus, they realized that there were endless business opportunities, but unfortunately they had nothing to do with them.
But the cunning Borg soon came up with a way to redeem himself. He asked someone to write a letter stating the benefits of photography as a new thing, and asked the company to send someone to bring money to redeem himself.
If I can take the photos to the company and bring them to Europe, I can earn tens of thousands of Dutch guilders every year, and my family will be able to live comfortably.
If you can make a lot of money by taking photos, why should you be a senior official?
This is more lifelike than asking an artist to draw your own portrait, almost like a real person.
Berg was certain that there was nothing like photography in the world.
With the surrender of the garrison of Geranze Castle, it marked the end of the war.
Due to the heavy losses in dealing with the Dutch Red Barbarians, warships in particular continued to be replenished.
Zheng Zhilong decided to temporarily move away from the Spanish Red Barbarians located in the north of Dongfan Island. Except for the remaining troops, the entire army retreated to Xiamen for repairs.
Previously, he was worried about the news that the capital was besieged, so he asked Zheng Zhiwan to lead a fleet with 10,000 soldiers and horses to King Qin.
However, as the defenders of the capital defeated the Donglu army and the news of the annihilation of tens of thousands of armored soldiers spread to Fujian, Zheng Zhilong, who had read the prince's personal letter, felt relieved.
The eldest son Zheng Sen performed extremely bravely in the battle. The prince greatly praised him and the more than a thousand soldiers of the Zheng family for their loyalty to the emperor and the country. Zheng Zhilong was also very proud and circulated the letter to all his brothers to read.
In addition, this great victory over Hongyi and the recovery of lost territory for the Ming Dynasty was a good thing in twos, which was gratifying and congratulatory. Naturally, a large banquet was held to entertain the soldiers of the three armies.
Now that Jifu was fine, Zheng Zhilong decided to set off for the capital again, presenting the captured Hongyi as a New Year's gift to the prince, and taking a look at Zheng Sen and Sheng Ying.
When you leave, don't forget to bring some local specialties, mainly selected high-quality seafood. This is something the prince specially told you last time.
Money must be given away, and seafood must also be given away!
For example, Zheng Zhilong sent people to select sixty-six of each of the yellow-lip fish, tuna, and grouper that the prince liked very much, each weighing more than five kilograms.
There will naturally be no shortage of crabs, prawns, scallops, conches, shark fins, etc. These seafood alone can carry as much as three boats.
As the weather gets colder after moving north, seafood frozen in crushed ice will not deteriorate easily and can keep it fresh.
In order to ensure that the seafood was edible as much as possible, Zheng Zhilong took these local products first, and a large team of people escorted the red barbarian prisoners to follow.
The group of people automatically ignored the southern capital where a certain emperor was located and went straight to the capital...
