Chapter 183: Going to Penghu
Off the coast of Penghu.
A large fleet of more than a hundred ships was sailing into the wind.
These more than one hundred ships are divided into two types.
The first type has about a dozen ships, all of which are extremely tall warships with more than a hundred cannons on board. It is the most outstanding masterpiece of Liaodong Shipyard. Of course, Liaodong Shipyard now has new ideas. It's just that He Xi asked Liaodong Shipyard to increase production.
At this time, although you can't get off the warship like a dumpling.
But the new ship is on hold for now.
The other kind is that there are all kinds of boats, but most of them are lucky boats.
Fu Chuan had many problems as a warship in the era of artillery battleships. But it is very suitable as a transport ship. Not to mention, there is a huge inventory of such ships. There were almost a hundred Fuchu ships, although not all Japanese troops were transported.
But it’s enough to start a battle for Penghu.
Fang Chengfeng made his final explanation to Qu Liangcai at this moment.
Fang Chengfeng said: "I have seen several centipede boats flash past before. Counting the time, the Fujian Navy must have known our movement. After all, the movement was too big to cover up. So, I am blocking the Fujian Navy here. Attack. You go to Penghu immediately. I won't put pressure on you, just fight hard. After taking Penghu, just send someone to notify me."
Although Fang Chengfeng said this, how could Qu Liangcai not be under pressure?
The Navy is not the same as the Army.
When the army encounters a place in the wild, it can set up camp and defend it on the spot. However, the navy is always in a state of motion at sea, and it does not matter whether it is defense or offense. Because it is very difficult to maintain a queue of ships on the sea.
In this case, that's why many famous naval generals advocate offense.
Because there is no defensive advantage at all. Whoever attacks first will naturally have the advantage.
In a naval battle, anything can happen.
The navy is very vulnerable without a port to rely on.
Only ports can allow a navy to take root.
Once you have Penghu Island, you will still have the opportunity to make improvements even after a failure. There is a chance to start over. And if there was no Penghu, Fang Chengfeng would naturally win this battle but not lose.
Qu Liangcai said: "Master Marquis, please listen to my good news."
Fang Chengfeng didn't say anything, and just asked Qu Liangcai to go down and do things. Qu Liangcai immediately took the boat, changed to his own boat, and led the Fuzhou fleet towards Penghu.
Fang Chengfeng ordered to turn. Cruise on the ocean west of Penghu.
Waiting for the Fujian Navy.
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There are not many troops stationed in Penghu, and there is only one guard station.
There is no other reason.
Fujian does not feel that there are any enemies at sea.
Even the Fujian side's emphasis on Penghu was not due to its military location, but to Penghu's commercial city.
Because when the sea opened, it was Jingjiang that started.
Penghu is a transportation thoroughfare. Another advantage is that based on the customs principle of focusing on the large and letting go of the small, all goods entering the mainland need to pay tariffs. If the goods from Liaodong to Nanyang are replenished on the southeast coast, the goods on the ship will Some of the goods are unclear.
Although most of their goods have to be transported to Nanyang, it does not prevent some goods from being sold locally.
This increases their costs.
But when trading in Penghu, there are not so many problems.
Just like that, spontaneous or not. Penghu itself formed a commercial city. It used to be subordinate to King Jingjiang, but now King Jingjiang has fallen. But there is no downfall for those who want to make money.
The owner has changed here, but the business is still the same.
It's just darker than before.
Due to trade reasons, the fleet was discovered before it even approached Penghu.
But the Southern Army on Penghu Island saw that the enemy was approaching fiercely. They didn't dare to attack at all. They just defended Penghu Island and sent small boats all the way west to ask for help from Fujian.
aid.
Upon seeing this, Qu Liang first sent people to persuade the merchants to surrender, and also told the merchants stranded here to give them a stick of incense before they could evacuate immediately or hide.
Otherwise, we will not be responsible for anything that goes wrong in the event of war.
Qu Liangcai also knew what the troops under his command were.
Naturally, a large number of merchant ships fled. But there are some that you simply can’t leave for a while. People are hiding, but goods cannot be hidden.
Qu Liangcai didn't care about them anymore. With an order, several large ships entered a bay surrounded by islands. On the main island of Penghu, the coastline is so long and winding that it is impossible for the Southern Army to completely hold it.
Immediately after a burst of artillery fire, several small boats landed ashore.
Then the trestle was built. Only then did the army have a place to stay on the island. During this period, the Confederate army made some moves, trying to compete and harass. But facing Qu Liangcai, who had the upper hand, they all came back in vain.
However, Qu Liangcai also knew that the battle really began when he actually set foot on Penghu Island.
Without him, ships can dock at many places on Penghu Island. After all, ships in this era do not have high requirements for ports. But the problem is that the Penghu Port has been built and has a lot of auxiliary measures to make it very convenient for the fleet to dock.
And this port is within the radiation range of the Penghu Acropolis. If you fire from the top of the city, you can hit the port directly.
Now other places are being built into such ports. It's not that you can't. But it takes a lot of time.
Therefore, what Qu Liangcai had to do was to attack the city and capture Penghu City as quickly as possible.
Qu Liangcai began to mobilize his troops without saying a word.
According to Fang Chengfeng's design, although Qu Liangcai had tens of thousands of troops under his command, his organizational structure was very backward. Qu Liangcai was directly under the jurisdiction of the camp head, which had different numbers of people, ranging from five hundred to one or two thousand.
And these battalions are named after warriors.
Without him, the Japanese have become accustomed to it over the years. Although the samurai lost a lot in the Japanese war, their prestige is still there, and they are followed by a group of people. It can be said that the leaders of the factions in the Japanese army are all samurai.
Qu Liangcai himself had a large camp of three thousand people. The officers in this battalion were all old men brought over from home by Qu Liangcai. Some of the soldiers in this battalion are from North Korea, some are from Japan, and a considerable number are drawn from the Eastern Expedition Army.
The proportion of Han people is more than 50%. It is an army built entirely in accordance with He Xi's new military system, with sufficient artillery and muskets.
Not to mention combat effectiveness.
However, the most important role in this camp is not fighting. But supervise the battle. Hold down the position. Let the Japanese do the hard work.
Qu Liangcai turned over the roster without saying a word.
He started to roll the names and said: "Yamana Camp, Maori Camp, Shimazu Camp, Ouchi Camp, your four battalions attack from all sides, I will support you with artillery, and after attacking the city, no one is allowed to kill. The wealth inside belongs to you. Yes. If you take a step back, you know the consequences."
After the four Japanese samurai came out of the queue, they shouted: "Hi."
Then he took his own team out into battle.
These camps are all large camps.
There is no other reason. The names of these battalions are also very famous. The centipede is dead but not stiff. Just like the Shimazu family, it is a popular local surname. Unless they are killed into a no-man's land, this surname cannot be changed.
Each of these battalions has 2,000 men.
They were equipped with swords, guns, crossbows, armor, and even some fire guns. Most of them are weapons replaced by the Ming army. But even so, these weapons are magic weapons in the eyes of the Japanese.
The only problem was that there was no time to build siege equipment. But Penghu City was not prepared to defend.
Because of trade, Penghu City is actually very prosperous, so much so that there is a circle of houses outside Penghu City.
However, these houses became a useful cover for the attackers.
It can allow the attacking party to rush directly to the city wall. Even above the city. There are quite a few firearms. It could not stop the Japanese attack.
Of course, it is natural that there will be heavy casualties.
Qu Liangcai didn't care too much about casualties. After victory, he would be rewarded with trophies, but that was all. Pensions and other things were the business of each battalion officer, as for the battalion officers at all levels. On weekdays, the command only allocates some military pay. Apart from that, there is nothing else.
Never did these Japanese samurai regard the lowest level ashigaru as one of their own. Probably not even a pension.
After all, when Japan was at war, there was no such thing as pension for these people.
