The Black Sails of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 31 The End of a Dream
Lin Qian was speechless and said irritably, "Tonight, tell me everything you know. You don't think I'll go to see the Portuguese like a fool just because I only listen to your side of the story, do you?"

"Oh, thank God!" José breathed a sigh of relief.

"Before that, you will train the ship's 'sailmen,' also known as 'sailers.' You said you know about navigation, so show them your abilities," Lin Qian instructed.

"Yes, Captain!"

……

The large sailing ship sailed along the west coast of Luzon for seven or eight hours.

Around 2 p.m., I saw the Fujian-style ship moored on the shore.

Lin Qian ordered the large sailboat to lower its sails and slow down, and to lower the ladder to bring up the people who were left behind on the Fujian ship.

Zhou Xiucai boarded the ship with a surprised look: "I thought we were going to go to Manila to pick you up as agreed in the backup plan. I didn't expect you to actually hijack this ship. The helmsman is indeed a genius at turning the chimney and removing the firewood."

Lin Qian smiled and replied, "I'll trouble you, Second Brother, to take stock of the cargo, water, and food on the ship."

Scholar Zhou cupped his hands and said, "It is my duty, and I cannot accept the trouble from you, Master."

After everyone was on board, the crew used the wooden boom poles on the large sailing ship to transfer several boxes of silver coins from the Fujian ship to the large sailing ship.

Along with the items hoisted onto the ship were several boxes of well-preserved cloves, nutmeg, and Lin Qian's nautical log, charts, sextant, and other items.

The Holy Justice might catch up at any time, and time is limited, so everything else has to be left on the Fuzhou ship.

However, this three-masted Fujianese ship was too slow and would be a burden to carry, so it had to be abandoned here.

After everyone and the cargo were on board, Lin Qian ordered the large sailboat to raise its sails and set sail.

Watching the Fujian ship sway with the waves and gradually shrink in her field of vision, Lin Qian felt a surge of emotion.

To be honest, this Fujian-style ship didn't have a name yet; it wasn't written on the prow. He and the other crew members simply referred to it as "the ship."

In a daze, Lin Qian recalled a sentence she had read somewhere: "A breeze begins with a ripple on the water, and a wave is formed from a gentle ripple."

"I'll call you Qingping," Lin Qian murmured to herself.

Before long, the Qingping disappeared between the sea and the sky.

Lin Qian withdrew her gaze and commanded, "Left rudder, heading northwest."

……

After half an hour.

The Sacred Justice also arrived at the anchorage of the Qingping.

The lookout shouted from afar, "Enemy ship spotted ahead, a three-masted Fujian-style ship from the Ming Dynasty, about 10,000 paces away."

The captain of the Holy Justice immediately ordered: "Prepare for battle!"

The first mate and artillery sergeant repeated the order: "Prepare for battle."

The gun ports of the entire ship were opened one by one, and the gunners lit the fuses, waiting for the two ships to meet.

"Five thousand paces away!" the lookout shouted.

At that moment, all the officers on the Holy Justice, including Alonso himself, were peering through their binoculars at the ship.

"Two thousand steps away!"

"It's that pirate ship!" one of the officers shouted.

The captain searched the sea but did not see the large sailing ship. Fearing an ambush, he said, "Maintain a distance of seven hundred paces and test the waters with cannon fire."

"A thousand steps away."

Through the telescope, the Qingping was still drifting on the sea, without raising its sails, as if it hadn't seen them at all.

Alonso was furious: "A bunch of idiots! It was an empty ship!"

"What?" The captain raised his binoculars to observe carefully, but he couldn't see anyone on the deck. However, these pirates were too cunning, and this might be another trap. He was hesitant for a moment.

Alonso immediately ordered: "Full speed ahead of the sailing ship, and go around this empty vessel."

The captain of the Holy Justice was somewhat worried: "What if those pirates are hiding on the ship?"

Alonso's face contorted with anger: "Then they're just as stupid as you."

"Shall we maintain the original route, Your Excellency?" the first mate inquired.

After a moment's thought, Alonso said, "No, the large sailing ship has been sailing along the coastline to pick up its crew from the Fujian ship. Now that they have achieved their goal, they will definitely head to the open sea. We will head northwest."

"Yes, Your Excellency the Governor!"

The Holy Justice sailed at full speed northwest for a day.

The sea was empty, and the lookout could only gaze aimlessly at the horizon. Everyone felt that the hope of catching up with the large sailing ship was slim. As evening approached, the captain approached Alonso and advised, "Your Excellency, the Holy Justice's speed is about the same as the large sailing ship. If we continue chasing like this, I'm afraid..."

Alonso knew this too, but how could he possibly admit defeat now and acknowledge that the sailing ship had been stolen and that he had been completely fooled by Lin Qian?

Alonso frowned, thought for a long time, and said, "Sail east to find the Golden Lion and the Silver Wolf."

Both of these were caravels, equipped with two masts and triangular sails. They were not very powerful, but they could catch up with larger sailing ships and engage in boarding combat without any problem.

The captain hesitated and said, "We are close to the coast here, and there is a risk of running aground if we sail at night."

Alonso forced out two words through gritted teeth: "Start the boat!"

The Holy Justice sailed eastward and returned to the coast of Luzon Island at dawn. After sailing north along the coast for several hours, a convoy came into view.

The lookout lowered his binoculars and reported loudly: "A convoy of ships has appeared at the bow, about five ships, about 20,000 paces away."

Alonso wondered, "He only sent three warships to Lingayen Bay, so why are there five on the return journey? Could it be that the two ships returning from Jellyfish Island have joined them?"
Because of the numerous islands to the south of Luzon and the narrow shipping lanes, the Spanish Navy usually sails along the northern side of the islands. The fleet returning from Jellyfish Island may also have chosen the northern route.

"The bow of the fleet is ten thousand paces away."

"The fleet is five thousand paces away at the bow."

As the lookout kept updating the distance, the five ships in the distance became clearer and clearer through the binoculars, and it could be seen that they were indeed of the shape of Spanish warships.

However, none of the five ships were traveling very fast, and some of them had damaged sails, as if they had just been through a major battle.

A bad feeling welled up in Alonso's heart.

"The fleet is two thousand paces away at the bow."

From this distance, we can already see the enemy's hull; their ship's sides are riddled with huge holes, clearly caused by cannon fire.

The sailors on deck were also listless and demoralized, and many of them had bandages wrapped around their bodies.

Both sides recognized each other through their telescopes and, a thousand paces apart, simultaneously lowered their sails to slow down.

Once both ships came to a stop, Alonso asked the captain of the Fury to come back and give a reply. Ten minutes later, the Fury sent a small boat with the captain to Alonso.

“I see your ship is badly damaged. I swear to God, you better tell me you repelled the pirates in Lingayen Bay!” Alonso said in an unfriendly tone.

The captain of the Fury was extremely embarrassed and said evasively, "Your Excellency, I have good news. We no longer need to worry about pirate attacks in Lingayen Bay. I assure God, not a single pirate has landed there."

Alonso's expression softened: "Well done. Now tell me about the battle. How many pirate ships did you sink?"

At this moment, the captain of the Rose Our Lady also boarded the ship and approached Alonso. Upon hearing this, he couldn't wait to complain: "Zero ships, Your Excellency. There are no pirate ships in Lingayen Bay at all. The idiots on the Fury, Golden Lion, and Silver Wolf mistook our ship for a pirate ship and bombarded the Rose Our Lady all night long!"

"What?" Alonso's eyes widened, and he felt the world spinning around him.

The captain of the HMS Fury retorted, "Who gave you permission to sail at night and intrude into combat waters?"

"Ha, aren't you sailing at night? Aren't you in combat waters?"

"We are acting on the orders of His Excellency the Governor!"

"Aren't we acting on the Governor's orders?"

Listening to the two captains arguing, Alonso tried to stop them, but his vision went black.

The captain of the Rose of Our Lady tearfully accused, "Thirty-two men! Your shelling killed thirty-two Spanish sailors! You murderer deserve to be hanged!"

"You didn't fight back? The Fury also lost twelve sailors and more than thirty were wounded. You are the executioner!"

"You were the first to turn off your ship's lights and fire blindly. Should I not retaliate, but instead push my bow forward and politely ask the esteemed 'Mr. Holland' why he is disturbing the sailors' rest with cannon fire?"

"I told you, that's a combat zone!"

"I haven't received any notification about any operational sea area! Regardless, you have your own people's blood on your hands!"

"You got it too!"

"I only took a small amount!"

"That's because your shelling was inaccurate!"

"Damn it, I challenge you to a duel! I'll show you how accurate my sword strikes are!"

Alonso was overcome with anger and frustration. He tried to say something but couldn't make a sound. His body swayed several times, and finally, he couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed.

The crew panicked for a moment, and after discussing it, they decided to return to Manila port first.

On the way, the fleet passed by the Qingping again.

Upon learning that this was Lin Qian's abandoned ship, the captain of the Fury had a sudden inspiration and sent a small boat to board the Qingping and 'capture' her.

In this way, the Spanish Royal Navy achieved a breakthrough, marking its first victory.

(End of this chapter)