Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 331: Follow me to land!
TW
Fort Zeelandia
This city is located in the southwest of Taiwan Island and is the best landing point from the mainland to Taiwan.

The sea and land situation here is very unique: the entire port is divided into inner port and outer port, separated by a series of islands and reefs such as Dayuan Island and Beixianwei Island.

There are only two routes for ships to enter the inner harbor. One is the southern channel between Dayuan Island and Beixianwei Island, and the other is the northern channel of Luermen to the north of Beixianwei Island.

The difference between these two waterways is extremely obvious. The northern waterway of Luermen is shallow and narrow, and only small boats can pass through it. Large ships can only pass through during high tide. The southern waterway is wide and deep, and both large and small boats can easily enter.

As the Dutch base camp and trade hub in Taiwan, Fort Zeelandia was built on Tainan Island to control the southern shipping route.

Of course, the so-called defense system cannot consist of just this one fortress.

Although Rebao built on the northern channel of Luermen and Chikan City built in the inner harbor are a little perfunctory, the entire port can be said to be impregnable under the defense of these three fortresses.

Normally speaking, Governor Kallon would have been living a carefree life as he was in charge of the Ming Dynasty's foreign trade.

However, due to problems with the agreement with the Qing people, Caron, the Governor-General of the East India Company in TW, was caught in a dilemma.

In his original plan, once the agreement with the Qing people was completed, he would have enough capital to be re-elected. Then, with the various capitals accumulated in TW, he would be more likely to participate in the competition for the next Batavia Council.

However, things went against their wishes. Who could have imagined that the fighting power of the Qing people was so weak that in the end the musketeers had to take action to capture the city.

To ordinary people, no matter how they took it, as long as Guangzhou was captured, he, as the governor, naturally had a share of the credit.

But there is a key issue here. After such a change occurs, the report from Brunden, a front-line general, becomes extremely important.

As the saying goes, different words can give you two different opinions. The same result can give you completely different pictures when described in different ways.

If the fact that the Qing people failed to capture Guangzhou was glossed over in Brunden's report, then this battle was naturally won under the wise decision of Governor Caron, who led the company's fleet to capture Guangzhou.

But if Brunden had focused his report on the incompetence of the Qing people, then this battle was due to Governor Caron's wrong decision, which led to the company's property falling into trouble. Fortunately, Brunden was brave and tenacious, and finally captured Guangzhou and made up for the company's property losses.

It’s clear that Brundon’s favorable race to be the next Governor is unlikely to say anything good about him.

So the question is, what decision should he make after receiving the request for reinforcements?
It is simply impossible to ignore it.

Not to mention that Brendan also has supporters in the council, it is extremely difficult for him to bear to just sit back and watch the company's property being threatened.

But if we send reinforcements
"Has the fleet sent back any news?"

"Not yet. According to the estimated voyage distance, they should have reunited with Commander Brunden."

Watching the adjutant put dinner on his table, Caron asked casually while thinking.

He had fought his way up in the company, so he naturally had a mature way to deal with this situation.

Delay the sending of reinforcements as much as possible.

As long as he delays long enough, he may be able to wait for changes to emerge.

After all, the Ming Dynasty was also an extremely large country. How could it sit idly by and watch such a big city fall into the hands of the enemy?
If the Ming Dynasty continues the war, he may find an opportunity to turn the situation around, thereby attacking Brunden and weakening the credibility of his report as much as possible.

"Well, have the watchtower keep an eye on it and report back as soon as there's any news..."

"Your Excellency the Governor! Your Excellency the Governor!"

Just as Caron was assigning tasks to his adjutant, a soldier hurried in from outside the house.

"Rebao sent someone to report that a Ming fleet was staying nearby."

Ming fleet?

As soon as he heard these words, Caron immediately realized that something was wrong.

But he couldn't understand why the Ming army sent the fleet here instead of taking back Guangzhou City.

"Send someone to negotiate and ask them what they want to do."

"Yes!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the soldier ran out again. Caron didn't even bother to pay attention to the dinner that had just been served. He grabbed his coat and followed him.

opportunity!

Absolute opportunity!
As he ran, Caron couldn't help feeling excited.

From the perspective of others, the four Galleon-class battleships of Fort Zeelandia had been transferred to Guangzhou in two batches, and five to six hundred of the more than two thousand Dutch soldiers also accompanied them.

At this time, in the entire governor's territory, except for more than ten armed merchant ships, there were no main battleships, and the number of soldiers was not enough to fill the three fortresses.

Under such circumstances, Fort Zeelandia was obviously in a state of extreme emptiness, and as the governor of the place, he should not feel excited in any way.

But Karon has been managing overseas territories for so many years, how could he not know the importance of the matter?
He knew very well that the so-called Ming fleet was nothing more than the Zheng family's armed merchant ships.

Back then, they were able to force the Zheng family, which was at its peak, to withdraw to the mainland, forcing it to give up the huge profits from the Ming Dynasty's trade with Southeast Asia.

Although he had to accept the defeat in Liaoluo Bay because the War of Independence was at a critical stage and did not come for revenge due to cost reasons, this did not mean that the Dutch fleet was afraid of the Zheng family.

No matter what the reason was for the Zheng family's fleet to come to Taiwan, as long as he could destroy it, the city of Fuzhou would be like a girl taking off her clothes.

By then, with the merit of capturing two large port cities, Kallon could be re-elected as the governor of TW, and even the seat of the Batavia Council could be on his mind. How could he not be excited?
just
"Order armed merchant ships to prepare for battle."

When he arrived at the observation deck, Caron did not use the telescope to check the enemy situation immediately. Instead, he looked at the vague black spot in the distance after giving orders to the flag officer.

Based on the intelligence accumulated over the years and the density of those black spots, Caron was very sure that the Zheng family fleet should be out in full force. However, instead of hesitating, he became even more excited.

In essence, the Ming Dynasty did not attach much importance to the ocean.

After so many years, the Zheng family's armed merchant ships are still the type with only a few cannons, while the Dutch armed merchant ships are equipped with more than ten cannons.

In this way, even if our ships are fewer in number, we may still be able to fight with the assistance of superior firepower and shore fortresses.

What's more, do the Ming people know how to use strategies?

With this in mind, Caron put the telescope in front of his eyes, but when he really saw the "Zheng Family Fleet" clearly, not to mention the courage to fight head-on, even the thought of any conspiracy disappeared.

How can it be? !
As the black muzzles of guns appeared in Caron's sight, his hand holding the telescope began to tremble involuntarily.

At this time, the periphery of the North Channel was filled with nearly a hundred large and small warships, but what really frightened him were the more than ten double-decker galleons quietly parked in it.

"Armed merchant ships should take shelter in the inner harbor! Lock up all the Ming people in the city!" The shrill shout revealed Caron's thoughts to all the employees of the East India Company without reservation.

After that, he ignored everything else and immediately took his soldiers to start the capture operation in Fort Zeelandia.

This is understandable. It doesn't make sense that they are at war with the Ming Dynasty while allowing people with yellow skin and black hair to move freely in the city.

Moreover, Canglin actually knew etiquette. At this time, the descendants of these pirates and barbarians had put on the cloak of civilization and did things not as directly as in the early years.

Otherwise, if it were the time when the Portuguese had just landed in America, it is possible that Cuarón would have executed all the yellow people in Fort Zeelandia at the first opportunity.

"boom!"

"boom!"

"boom!"

Just when Caron's capture operation was halfway through, a series of continuous roars suddenly came.

When he heard the noise, his first reaction was not to return to the lookout tower, but to take out his pocket watch to check the time, and then urged his soldiers.

He was now certain that there must be Ming spies in the city, otherwise how could the Ming navy have such a coincidence to time the attack at high tide?
Hotburg is finished.

I'm afraid that Chikan City will find it difficult to resist the firepower of the double-decker galleons.

But we still have Fort Zeelandia. We will definitely be able to hold out until reinforcements arrive!
As his thoughts turned, Caron's mood fluctuated greatly.

When he thought of Fort Zeelandia, which had a complete defense system, he felt relieved, but he still issued orders to his soldiers one after another.

"Captain Puyol, take 400 men to the high ground outside the city and bring enough food. You must hold out for ten days."

"Yes!" Puyol naturally obeyed Caron's order, but at the same time he knew that the governor was going to abandon the other two fortresses. In this situation, he continued to say something.

"But Governor General, I don't think the Ming army has the ability to break through Chikan City, so I still suggest that we reinforce Chikan City first."

As soon as Puyol finished speaking, the surrounding soldiers all looked at Caron. However, who would have thought that this usually reasonable governor not only did not give any explanation, but actually started to scold him directly.

"Idiot! You know all this, how could I not know? Follow the order!"

"I reserve the right to appeal to the Council!"

Having said this, Puyol, as a subordinate, could only utter a harsh word. Afterwards, Caron continued to lead the soldiers to capture the Ming people in the city, and the sound of artillery gradually stopped.

Faced with such a situation, Kallon would not think that the Ming fleet had stopped attacking.

After all, the Northern Passage is only accessible to large ships at high tide, and few people know that they would take this route normally.

Under such circumstances, even though the specifications of the Rebao and Zeelandia were the same when they were first established, one underwent several reinforcements and expansions in the following twenty years, while the other was rarely visited.

With this appearance, it would be a miracle if the ship could withstand the attack of more than ten double-decker galleons.

Kalon had been the governor of TW for more than three years, so his understanding of these fortresses was naturally far beyond ordinary people. Just when he was trying his best to capture the Ming people in the city, the hot fortress had lost its most basic function under the artillery fire of the Ming fleet as he expected.

"Budou, is it time to land in the port?"

After hearing what Mei Chun said, Shen Tingyang couldn't help but hesitate.

This time he was really forced into a task. Not only did he have to lead a huge fleet to the coast of Fujian and wait for orders, but he was also assigned the task of attacking Taiwan.

You know, although he has been dealing with ships for half his life, he has never commanded a fleet of this scale.

If His Majesty had not repeatedly stated that there was no need to fight the Dutch fleet this time, he would not have dared to carry more than a dozen new warships on his shoulders even if he had risked disobeying the royal order.

just
"After all, it was a Dutch fortress guarding the shipping lanes. How could it collapse like this? Is there some conspiracy?"

"Minister, His Majesty's letter has already stated that the fortress in the north is just a showpiece. If the sea breeze blows stronger, it may be blown down. Our two or three hundred artillery pieces have been bombarding for a long time, and I am afraid that Yingtian City should also collapse."

Hearing this, Shen Tingyang couldn't help but smack his lips. It was obvious that the doubts in his heart were not reduced much by Mei Chun's words.

But he also knew that wasting time here would only waste time, so after about three or two breaths he passed down the military orders one after another.

"Order the small boats to scout ahead, and the large ships to follow."

"Order!"

As soon as the words fell, a soldier passed the order with a torch. When Mei Chun saw Shen Tingyang's nervous face, he couldn't help but complain in his heart: "Your Majesty has explained all the details, we just need to follow the emperor's order and act steadily. This old man is so afraid of the future, is he still worried that Your Majesty is wrong?"

Wherever there are people, there are conflicts, no matter how big or small.

Although the two of them have been working together for a long time, some disagreements are inevitable due to various factors.

Even so, although Shen Tingyang carried out His Majesty's orders without any compromise, he still had some doubts in his heart.

But what about Meichun?

Your Majesty ordered the entire army to convert to self-propelled muskets, and he did so; Your Majesty left him in the rear to train with peace of mind, and he did so;

This time, His Majesty ordered him to lead 7,000 new troops to fight with the fleet, and he agreed directly without even asking who the enemy was.

The gap is directly reflected in the comparison between the two.

Of course, this does not mean that Shen Tingyang’s loyalty to Zhu Cilang is slightly less than Mei Chun’s.

The key point is that people like Shen Tingyang, who have read a lot of books, have already formed a set of value systems in their hearts. Even if they can block a fatal blow for Zhu Cilang without hesitation, it does not mean that they will change their judgment.

However, peerless generals like Mei Chun, Hu Yiqing and Xiang Rensheng had only one goal in mind: to move forward courageously. As long as they set their sights on one person, they would never change their original intention even if the seas dried up and the rocks crumbled. What's more, the person they had set their sights on was the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty who had saved the world from collapse?

However, this difference does not matter. The emperor's order has already been passed on. Even if the two have slight differences on some issues, it will not delay anything.

As one ship after another passed through the Northern Passage, Shen Tingyang finally felt relieved.

But when he was wondering why His Majesty was so familiar with the situation here among the Dutch, he heard Mei Chun's voice.

"The rear guard! Follow me to land!"

(End of this chapter)