Volume 2: Soaring! The Overlord of the Region Chapter 316: Chongming Sand Attack and Defense (VIII)
The time came to the early morning of May 4, 1617. As the sun rose, what came into everyone's eyes was naturally the cool morning air, dozens of warships of varying sizes emitting thick smoke, and a messy anchorage.
"Your Majesty, the damage caused by the Ming people's night attack last night has been counted."
"Read it."
"Yes, it is now clear that the Ming people used a new type of weapon last night. This weapon can..."
"Stop! I know what this is. It's a mine! I didn't expect the Ming people's mines to be so advanced. The Ming crown prince is so shameless. As the ruler of a great country, he actually prioritizes the development of defensive weapons... Okay, let's just talk about the losses."
"Yes, last night, a total of 23 ships in my combined fleet were hit by torpedoes, including 11 auxiliary ships, 9 second-level warships, and 3 first-level warships. Because the parts that were hit by torpedoes were all below the waterline, it is very difficult to repair. Now, the 11 auxiliary ships have tilted to varying degrees. The remaining 12 warships must also enter the slipway to be completely repaired."
"...Apart from being struck by lightning, are there any other losses? I remember that the Ming fleet bombarded us nearby last night."
"Yes, Your Majesty. We have now found out that the enemy's warships came from the north of Nansha Island. They are probably new ships that have just been completed at the Changsha Shipyard. Uh... the enemy's artillery attack on us last night caused serious damage to two second-level warships and minor damage to four."
"Oh... got it. You, go and invite Alfonso and General Yagyu over."
…
After further consultation between the three commanders, the following decision was made:
First, since we have already gained a firm foothold on Nansha Island, we must continue the landing battle. Siam should take advantage of the rising sea level from this morning to noon to replenish artillery, ammunition and food for its troops on the island.
2. The Spanish fleet and the Japanese fleet joined forces and headed north along the coastline on the southwest side of the Nansha Island to see if they could provide fire support for the new Siamese army from the flank.
However, such agreements have not been effectively implemented.
It was not that the allied forces of the three countries were not united, but when their respective ships began to move towards their respective targets, the lookouts on each ship reported at the same time: a large number of black spherical objects were found on the sea!
Last night, Wang Chengen not only sent out a suicide squad to raid the anchorage of the Combined Fleet, but also brought five semi-finished warships to pick up people - although they did receive more than 130 surviving members of the suicide squad later.
The most important thing is: after the outer Spanish fleet began to counterattack last night, Wang Chengen not only ordered five semi-finished products to retreat quickly, but also left behind countless small boats - Changsha Shipyard simply doesn't have too many such ships! Then these small boats spent an entire night laying thousands of mines in the waters near Nansha Island.
Looking at the black spheres floating not far away on the sea, Luo Jifutu suddenly felt a severe discomfort in his stomach.
"What should we do? What should we do? If we can't even take down a shipyard in Ming after years of preparation , how can Siam survive when facing the Ming after it reacts?!"
"Your Majesty, at this moment, we need to do two things."
"General Yagyu, please speak."
"First, Nansha Island is no longer suitable as a bridgehead for attacking the Changsha Shipyard. We have to find another location."
"Where to change to?"
"Chongmingsha Island. After yesterday's battle, we roughly understand that the Ming army here will not exceed 10,000. So far, when our army has gained a foothold on Nansha Island, we have not seen the defenders of Chongmingsha Island take ships to support Nansha Island. On the contrary, the support of the Ming people to Nansha Island comes from the Changsha Shipyard... By analogy, the defenders of Chongmingsha Island must not be many, and the area of Chongmingsha Island is much larger than that of Nansha Island. In other words, we will quickly and smoothly take Chongmingsha Island."
"Then what?"
"Then? Then of course we will use Chongmingsha Island as a base and attack Changsha Island from the northeast of Changsha Island. Although compared with the direct attack on Changsha Shipyard after occupying Nansha Island, this is a long detour. We don't know the road conditions on Changsha Island. But in any case, I personally think that this plan is much better than attacking Nansha Island by force. After all, the main fleet of the Ming Kingdom has not appeared yet, and our fleet is stationed on these small sand dunes, which is always a hidden danger."
"Um...where's Don Alfonso?"
"Your Majesty, I agree with General Yagyu's opinion."
"Okay, that's the first thing, what's the second thing?"
"Your Majesty, that means we must withdraw the main force of your army currently on Nansha Island. Your Majesty, please allow me to say something unpleasant as a foreign minister. The fighting spirit of your army that cooperated with me in attacking the northern end of Nansha Island yesterday..."
"Well... our country has its own national conditions. Okay, I agree with this plan, so let's start implementing it right away."
…
"Marshal, the thieves are retreating!"
"Hmm?" Qi Jin hadn't slept a wink from last night to this morning. After hearing his subordinates' report, he was stunned for a while before coming to his senses: "Retreat? Why would they retreat?"
The reason why he said this was, of course, that the situation on his side was not optimistic at the moment.
After a day of fierce fighting , the 5,000 Nansha Island defenders had lost more than 1,300 soldiers, with more than 400 wounded. More than one-third of the combat power was gone.
After all, Nansha Island is a large island with an area of more than 30 square kilometers. Even though many places are covered with bushes and swamps, the second line of defense they are guarding now is six kilometers long! After deducting more than 500 artillerymen, the remaining soldiers each guarded an area of more than two meters.
Moreover, unlike the Siamese army which had a large number of troops and could attack in turns, Qi Jin's soldiers could not rest - as long as the Siamese army could maintain the intensity of the first day's attack for two days, it was possible that this trench would have to be abandoned.
Although there is a third trench behind them, the cross-section of the island becomes larger as you go deeper in - the third trench is eight kilometers long - so it basically has no defensive significance.
So, when Qi Jin confirmed that the Siamese army was beginning to retreat, he was truly overjoyed!
Although he wanted these black mules to get out of here, as a veteran, Qi Jin still organized a pursuit operation in the spirit of not taking advantage of others. While he lost more than 100 people, he also harvested more than 300 heads.
"Zhiyuan, why do you think these Siamese bandits are retreating now?"
"Haha, Marshal, you are testing me." Zhang Hong tilted his head and thought for a while: "Marshal, I think there are only two reasons. First, our battle situation was so critical yesterday that no reinforcements came from Chongmingsha. The enemy's ulterior motives have been seen through. So the bandit chief wanted to capture Chongmingsha. Second, our fleet may be back."
"Well, what do you think?"
"Of course I hope our fleet can return soon. Although our fleet cannot fight the opposing fleet head-on, the navy's affairs still need to be resolved by the navy. If the fleet can return, even if it involves external forces, it can greatly reduce our burden."
"That's right. What if the fleet doesn't come back and the other party just wants to capture Chongming Sand?"
"Marshal, if this happens, Chongmingsha will definitely not be able to be defended. Moreover, we may be attacked from both sides. What I mean is to take advantage of tonight to withdraw all the 1,000 brothers on Sansha Island to the seaside of Changsha Island to strengthen the defense of Changsha Island. Then, ask Eunuch Wang and others to use mines to completely block the water surface between the four islands!"
