Chen Kan's 20,000 troops lined up quietly in front of a city.
This is a small city, not as big as a county town in the Ming Dynasty. It is also the first satellite city to Bolin State.
The city wall made of random stones was densely packed with native troops.
Or rather, a crowd of savages.
At least in Chen Kan's view, they were not considered an army.
Leather armor, this kind of armor was considered the lowest level of armor in the Ming Dynasty. It was made of donkey skin, sheepskin or pig skin and then tanned.
This kind of armor was basically eliminated during the Ming Dynasty and Hongwu Dynasty.
The most inferior army of the Ming Dynasty would at least have an iron breastplate in front of the leather armor.
But even with armor like this, if you look around, the armor wearing rate in Sumatra will not exceed 20% at most.
It is hard to imagine that this is the army of a large country with a population of more than one million and tens of thousands of soldiers.
If this population and army were placed anywhere around the Ming Dynasty, they would definitely be called a powerful country.
Unfortunately, this is Nanyang.
There is very little iron ore here, but there is an abundance of copper ore.
Therefore, there are many copper weapons in the Sumatra army.
It is said that the countries on the border of Nanyang are rich, but in fact the only ones who are truly rich are the nobles who can be called slave owners.
What Chen Kan could see, Dou Xing and Zhang Dong who were following Chen Kan naturally also saw it.
The two looked at each other, and both saw an incredible look in each other's eyes.
Dou Xing threw the telescope in his hand to the soldiers and asked Chen Kan in a low voice: "Commander, I don't think these native troops have any intention of leaving the city to fight. Besides, they look too... well ...It’s too weak, do we need to waste firepower here?”
Chen Kan frowned and thought for a moment, then suddenly said in a waning mood: "Let's go directly to Bolingbang. This is a military city, and there probably won't be anything good in it."
"Eh!"
Tan Cong responded, and the soldiers who delivered the order quickly passed on Chen Kan's order.
The 20,000-strong army was still on its way to Bolingbang.
Chen Kan walked thoughtfully. In the past few days, Zhang Dong and others proposed to Chen Kan more than once to cut down trees and make a simple walking chariot for them to carry him, but Chen Kan refused.
It wasn't that Chen Kan insisted on some trick of eating and sleeping with the soldiers, but that he was really not used to the Ming Dynasty's chariots, and he was prone to motion sickness. After one ride, all the bones in his body seemed to fall apart, and it was far less comfortable than walking on his own. .
The 20,000-strong army came and left with a roar.
Just as the rear army broke out of camp, the city gate suddenly opened wide, and thousands of indigenous troops poured out from behind the gate.
When Tan Cong, who stayed behind to break up the rear, saw this, a bloodthirsty light flashed in his eyes.
"Send the order, prepare for three stages of shooting."
The soldiers who had just stood up immediately turned around and leveled the muskets in their hands.
Looking at the roaring native troops rushing toward them, their eyes were filled with amusement.
Naturally, Chen Kan's front army couldn't hear the noise coming from the rear army, but even if they heard it, Chen Kan wouldn't care.
With an army like this, even if the entire satellite city's army chased them out, it wouldn't be enough to pose any threat to the 20,000-strong army.
The native army had no formation and no mounts. They just roared and charged towards Tan Cong's rear army.
If Chen Kan were here, he would definitely observe three seconds of silence for them.
In the Ming Dynasty, even the chieftain armies in the Yunnan-Guizhou region have begun to study the art of war.
The armies of these countries in Southeast Asia are still rushing upward in a swarm, as if they are fighting in a group.
This is too far off.
When the first native soldier rushed into the range of the musket, Tan Cong showed a bloodthirsty smile on his face and ordered: "Fire!"
The flag soldier passing the order waved his flag, and the first row of Ming soldiers pulled the trigger without hesitation.
"Bang bang bang~"
After a sound like fried beans, the native troops who rushed into the shooting range suddenly fell to the ground like a strong wind sweeping through waves of wheat.
After the first row of soldiers from the Ming Dynasty finished shooting, they immediately squatted down and started to press their guns. The second row of soldiers from the Ming Dynasty immediately made up for the second shot.
Then there's the third row.
Such a cycle of three salvos can prevent the bullets of the Daming musket from leaving too long a gap.
After three bursts of gunfire, more than half of the thousands of indigenous soldiers who rushed out had fallen.
The rest of the native army also braked suddenly, turned around and ran back with panic on their faces.
While running, he was yelling something in a jabbering dialect.
Among the soldiers sent by Zheng He, those who knew the Nanyang language began to translate for other Ming soldiers.
The general idea is that the Ming army is a heavenly army, invincible, inaccessible, and indestructible.
Otherwise, die!
Thousands of native troops, from charging to fleeing leaving hundreds of corpses behind, took less than a stick of incense.
The Ming army was frightened without even touching the hem of their clothes. It was appropriate to say that they came and went like the wind.
The frightened native army did not leave the city again to pursue.
Tan Cong stopped wasting time here. With a wave of his hand, the whole army set off and quickly followed the front army led by Chen Kan and Dou Xing.
When the battle report from the rear army reached Chen Kan, Chen Kan had already walked twenty miles.
Chen Kan was noncommittal about Tan Cong's results.
But from the bottom of my heart, I am probably not very satisfied.
The other party only chased out so many people, and he let half of them go, which somewhat insulted the reputation of the Great Tomorrow Soldiers.
However, Chen Kan didn't say much.
Anyway, it is a blocking battle without suspense, and it is not a great achievement of killing generals and capturing the flag. Good or bad will not affect the final outcome.
The one who had the biggest reaction was Dou Xing, the former military commander.
In his own words, he didn't win any battles as a rear army, and he still didn't win any battles as a front army. What's the point of being a front army?
Chen Kan listened with great interest to Dou Xing cursing Tan Cong for nearly ten minutes before he continued to give the order to move forward.
The next day, Chen Kan led his army through the second satellite city.
Then Dou Xing couldn't bear it anymore and had to throw a few grenades into the city, saying that he couldn't let Tan Cong snatch away all the good things.
The effect was very good. After hundreds of explosions, the native soldiers who stood on the city wall and saluted the Ming army suddenly felt their knees weak and fell to their knees.
Chen Kan was speechless.
Dou Xing was also speechless.
The army continued to advance, and on the third day, the third satellite city came into view.
The closer the army is to the capital, the more elite it becomes. This is an eternal truth in any country.
Sumatra is no exception.
The native army in the third satellite city finally looked like an army, at least the armor rate was over half.
Although this is the result Chen Kan came up with after including clothes sewn from various animal skins.
But at least it’s halfway through.
At the same time, Chen Kan also encountered his first resistance since arriving on the island.
A fierce general who looked like a chimpanzee led an army of tens of thousands to block the way of Chen Kan's army to Bolingbang.
However, it was just blocking the road, but it didn't launch an attack, and it didn't even look like it was attacking.
It's just that the general in charge kept yelling something.
Chen Kan formed his formation, moved a wooden block in front of the army, and listened to the chimpanzee-like general chattering a lot of incomprehensible bird language.
"What is he saying?"
Chen Kan looked with interest at the chirping general who was only a few hundred meters away from him, hopping and pointing at his own army. He turned to look at a general dressed as a thousand households and asked.
The general is Qian Hu under Zheng He, who is proficient in Nanyang, so he is now acting as Chen Kan's translator.
Hearing Chen Kan's question, the Qianhu said strangely: "Come back to Marshal, what the natives want to express is that our Ming army is an unjust army. It is a heinous crime to invade their country and kill their people. You will definitely be punished by God."
Chen Kan said suspiciously: "Don't lie to me. Although I can't understand Nanyang dialect, I can tell from his expression that what he said is definitely not that literary."
Qianhu was stunned for a moment and then explained: "Well, Marshal Hui is really not that artistic, so my subordinates processed it a little bit, but the meaning I want to express is pretty much the same."
Chen Kan nodded, confirming his approach, and then said softly: "Tell him, my Ming Dynasty soldiers are here only to punish the culprits who dare to covet my Ming Dynasty treasure ship, and will not harm innocent people. If he is willing Surrender and lead my army to punish the culprit, and I can give him a chance to be loyal to the Ming Dynasty."
Qianhu nodded, then pulled his neck and yelled at the general for a while.
The general suddenly became excited, pointed at the place where Chen Kan was, and screamed louder.
Qianhu's face suddenly turned ugly.
Chen Kan asked curiously: "What did he say?"
Qianhu hesitated for a moment, then frowned and said, "Commander, he said you were insulting his character, and he asked for a duel with you."
Chen Kan's face twitched, and then he suddenly became excited.
Fighting generals, this ancient way of war disappeared in the Ming Dynasty as early as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, when the saying "The Soldier's Tricks" came into being.
I didn't expect that such a simple way of war would still be preserved in this primitive land.
Chen Kan rolled his eyes, nodded and said: "Tell him that I agree to duel with him, but if he loses, he must immediately make way for my army, otherwise don't blame me for killing him."
"Commander, no!"
As soon as Chen Kan said this, a series of objections suddenly sounded around him.
"It doesn't matter!"
Chen Kan raised his hand and pressed it with unparalleled confidence on his face.
After suppressing a burst of opposition, Chen Kan ordered Qianhu: "Tell him my conditions."
Qianhu was a little hesitant, but seeing the determination on Chen Kan's face, he still reluctantly started to spread the message.
Then, the general opposite burst out laughing, and then started spouting nonsense.
"Commander, he agreed and said that according to the rules, the armies of both sides must withdraw from the range of fifty steps each at this time."
Chen Kan nodded and ordered the army to retreat fifty steps.
I think this is to prevent each other from shooting cold arrows at each other.
Chen Kan stood up and moved around, then silently took out two small pistols from his arms that had not been used for a long time.
The moment they saw the pistol, the faces of the generals who had been objecting suddenly showed strange expressions.
Qianhu said in confusion: "Commander, do you use this?"
Chen Kan glanced at him sideways: "What's wrong? Is there a problem? He doesn't stipulate that firearms cannot be used in duels, right?"
"No, no problem!"
Qianhu shook his head decisively and sighed in his heart that he was still too young.
The general had already walked to the middle of the road and started shouting. Chen Kan also walked out of the crowd and calmly told his subordinates: "Wait for my good news."
The generals nodded like chickens pecking at rice.
At this time, who dares to say even half a word that he is not here?
Chen Kan walked towards the general with his gun in hand, his face full of indifference.
Fighting against generals was fun, but Chen Kan would not be so stupid as to be shirtless with him.
He was just too lazy to waste time on the road. After all, the opponent had tens of thousands of troops. Even if he stood there and let Chen Kan's soldiers kill them, it would take a long time.
If the duel can make the opponent withdraw or even switch sides, then it is a profit.
If the other party doesn't admit it, it doesn't matter. Killing people will delay time anyway, and he doesn't care about delaying him to go up and fire two shots.
Chen Kan stood still more than ten meters away from the general, and then curled his fingers at him.
The general seemed to be insulted by Chen Kan's indifferent expression, and he suddenly rushed towards Chen Kan with a ferocious look on his face and a strange-shaped sword.
Chen Kan slowly raised his gun, and when the general was less than five meters away from him, he decisively pulled the trigger.
"Bang~"
"Ah~"
Gunshots and screams sounded almost at the same time. The chimpanzee-like enemy rolled somersaults on the ground, a look of pain suddenly appeared on his face.
There was already a small bloody hole on one of his thighs.
There is a saying that the gun is fast from seven steps away, and the gun is accurate and fast within seven steps. At such a close distance, there is no reason for Chen Kan to miss it.
"Ah ah ah ah~"
The general's eyes were scarlet, and his face was filled with resentment as he babbled a lot of nonsense to Chen Kan.
Chen Kan tilted his head and listened for a long time, then frowned and said, "Can you speak human language?"
The general was furious, stood up with his sword in hand, and rushed towards Chen Kan again with the sword in his hand.
Chen Kan aimed at his other leg and shot him again.
The general suddenly couldn't stand and knelt down in front of Chen Kan.
Chen Kan said dissatisfied: "Can you speak human language?"
The general got angry and cursed in harsh Ming Dynasty Mandarin: "General Ming Dynasty, you don't follow martial ethics and you actually attack..."
Finally able to understand what nonsense he was talking about, Chen Kan suddenly felt relieved.
He just said that a general who could command an army of tens of thousands of people was definitely at the top of the Ming Dynasty. How could he not speak Ming Dynasty dialect?
How about cooperating with this guy to play pretending to be a pig and eating a tiger?
Chen Kan walked up to him and scolded: "You can speak human language, didn't you say it earlier?"
The general waited for Chen Kan with hatred. His whole face was distorted because of the pain, and he said angrily: "Why is your Ming dialect a human dialect, but our Nanyang dialect is not a human dialect?"
Chen Kan rolled his eyes and asked calmly: "Then don't worry about it. I'm going to ask you, now that you have lost, do you admit it?"
The general said angrily: "You attack me secretly, but you can't win with force!"
Chen Kan narrowed his eyes, and there was some kind of danger signal in his eyes: "So, you are not going to admit your fault, tsk, I thought you were some kind of man, but I didn't expect you are also a villain who can't afford to lose. Forget it, Since you don’t admit it, it’s the same thing if we kill you. Even the ten thousand people under your command may have to be buried with you?”
The general was stunned, a flash of shame and anger flashed across his face, and said sternly: "Who said I don't admit my fault? I, Su Lidongdong, am a stalwart husband. Of course I can afford to lose. On the contrary, it's you who are smart and go back on your word and are as cunning as a fox. You If you say you only kill the first culprit, how can you guarantee that?"
"Puch~"
Chen Kan couldn't help but smile when he heard the name Su Lidongdong.
There are also people who call this name and repeat the words.
Su Lidongdong clearly felt Chen Kan's mockery, and his ugly face suddenly turned red.
Chen Kan stopped smiling, looked at Su Lidongdong and asked, "So, are you willing to be loyal to the Ming Dynasty?"
Su Lidongdong grimaced in pain, but after hearing these words, his face suddenly became alert.
"Who said I would be loyal to the Ming Dynasty? I just don't want the tragedy of Malacca to happen again in Bolingbang. I know you Ming people are invincible. I also tried to persuade the king, but he didn't listen and insisted on incurring the wrath of the Ming Dynasty. , I don’t want hundreds of thousands of people in Bolingbang to be buried with him for his own selfish interests.”
"Oh~"
Chen Kan snorted, then suddenly grinned and said, "How about we make a deal?"
"What deal?"
"I'll help you become the king of Sumatra. You take me to trick the city gates of Bolingbang. As long as you agree, I promise to take away only the wealth accumulated in Abi Town and Bolingbang City and not harm the people in the city. millimeter."
"Um?"
Su Lidongdong's eyes rolled around and he said suspiciously: "How could you Ming people be so kind?"
