Volume 3: Confrontation! The Run of Civilization Chapter 487 You are also a plagiarist
On September 12, 1621, under the premise that officials from the Imperial Observatory, local fishermen and many merchants who had been traveling on this route for a long time agreed that there would be no big storms in the near future, Cao Wenzhao gave an order and the mighty Ming fleet finally set sail from Taipei Port.
Along the way, the most nervous people were Li Guozhu, Yan Siqi and others who led the naval escort: with so many troop transport ships, if the Spanish fleet rushed over desperately, yes, the naval battle would definitely be won, but if the enemy destroyed a few troop transport ships, even if the naval victory was meaningless.
However, what surprised the two was that during the 15-day voyage from Taipei to Manila, not only did they not see the main force of the Spanish Luzon Fleet, they didn't even see a reconnaissance ship.
When they were about to enter Manila Bay, the Spanish at the entrance of the bay simply lit the beacon tower and quickly retreated. Li and Yan thought that there would be a big battle after entering the bay, so they deliberately concentrated all the warships at the front. As a result, when they approached Manila City, they did not see any enemy warships.
"Well, although this allows our army to land smoothly, where has the enemy fleet gone? If our army cannot capture Manila within two months, we will still have to rely on the rear to continue to transport supplies. This will cause great hidden dangers."
"Zhenquan, it seems that the enemy is planning to attack our logistics line. To me, this is also expected. After all, the scale of our fleet is much larger than that of the enemy. If I were leading the army , I would not be so stupid as to crash into them."
"Yes, that's true. Then let's escort the army to land and then return. After sending all the transport ships back to Taipei, you and I will head south to search for the enemy fleet."
"Okay, but after all this trouble, at least another twenty days have passed. Including the time it takes to return to Taipei to pick up the transport fleet, our stay in this sea area will not exceed a month. Alas, Taiwan is still too far away from here..."
"What can we do? After all, the five states in central and southern Taiwan cannot produce even a single gun or bullet. It would be more secure if all the guns and cannons were transported to Taipei and then shipped together."
…
September 27, Manila City.
"Governor, the Chinese have split into two groups and landed about five kilometers north and south of Manila."
“As expected.”
The Spanish Governor of the Philippines who was in charge of Manila at this time was not a Castile, but a Frenchman: Henri de Bourbon, the third Prince of Condé in the historical dimension.
Of course, in this dimension, due to the fall and division of the Kingdom of France, this Highness is now the lord of the independent Duchy of Bourbon, and his official title is Grand Duke Henry II of Bourbon.
At the beginning of this year, shortly after Henry confirmed that his wife was pregnant again, Philip appointed him as the Governor of the Philippines and sent him to the Far East. This appointment caused an uproar in Spain at the time: What? Can we let the French be the governor of our Spanish colonies?
But Philip said that the Duchy of Bourbon, like the County of Barcelona, is a fiefdom of the King of Spain, and its Grand Duke is also a vassal of the King. How can he not be the Governor-General of the Philippines? Otherwise, how can the great unity within the European Union be reflected?
Such profound truth left the Spanish nobles speechless: Well, Your Majesty, you are doing this just to give us a warning, so that we governors outside should abide by the rules.
Of course Philip meant this: since Spain's colonies were so widespread and so far-flung, even with the bonus of Tianshu, the governors of various places did everything they could and could not do except dare not to be independent.
How can this continue? The governors imposed heavy taxes on the colonies. On the surface, it seemed that they were continuously sending money to the treasury, but in fact, they were just draining the pond to catch fish. Didn't you see that the commercial taxes in the Netherlands alone exceeded the gold and silver paid by the entire Americas? Moreover, the governors squeezed the colonies too hard. With the bonus of Tianshu, did they really think that the Indians and black slaves could only accept it?
Therefore, it was a two-birds-with-one-stone strategy to introduce nobles from outside Spain to serve as colonial governors, to give these greedy guys some competitive pressure and to show Spain's broad mind to the greater Europe.
Of course, this Henry was actually very good at fighting, especially in defense. At the same time, after Henry was sent to the Philippines, as a rule, his family had to live in Madrid. And Henry's wife was just pregnant, and the baby was the most famous Conde of the Conde family.
In short, Henry set out in February 1621 and arrived in Manila in July. Just after landing and before he had a firm foothold, he received news that the Ming Dynasty had declared war on Spain. Then he received news of the fall of Macau, Thanlyin, Timor, Java, Malacca and other places.
Duke Henry seemed helpless in this situation: the Philippines was the strongest among the Spanish colonies in the Far East, but it was still limited in the face of the Ming Dynasty. The only thing he could do now was to prepare for war, defend the city, and send a fast ship back to the country for help (he didn't know that the reinforcements were on the way).
As an army commander, he knew he was not good at naval warfare. At the same time, as a Frenchman, he could not be too tough in the face of more than 70% of the Castilians in the 30,000 navy and army. Therefore, in terms of the navy, he readily followed the advice of the commander of the fleet, Alfonso: instead of directly confronting the main fleet of the Ming Dynasty, he sailed out of the harbor one step ahead to fight guerrilla warfare.
Yes, if Manila fell, Spain's rule in the Philippines would be destroyed. However, as long as Manila was still in the hands of the Spaniards, it would be easy for the Spaniards to obtain supplies on Luzon and its surrounding islands. Therefore, the Philippine fleet had the capital to fight guerrilla warfare.
In Alfonso's plan, the first landing of the Ming army must be of great scale, and the limited forces of the party must not be used to resist. As long as Archduke Henry can rely on the strong city of Manila to withstand the first round of attack by the Ming army, then his fleet can launch guerrilla warfare.
Archduke Henry agreed to this plan, and the benefit of it was that Alfonso fully supported his transformation of Manila 's defenses.
Since Henry arrived in Manila in July, the city's defenses have been continuously strengthened by the Han Chinese and local natives under the impetus of the Spanish. By the end of September of that year, when the Ming army landed, after emergency repairs, two trenches had been built on the other three sides of Manila, except for the port area. Although there was no barbed wire in front of the trenches, many obstacles were set up. At the same time, the outer walls of Manila, which had already been cemented and bastioned, were once again reinforced.
Archduke Henry knew very well that if Manila fell after a year of defense without reinforcements, it would not be a big problem for him to be captured and sent back to Europe, or to die in battle. But if the fortress fell quickly in two or three months, the Bourbon Duchy might cease to exist, and the careers of Europeans outside Spain would be affected as a whole.
Therefore , he was determined to defend the fortress even until his death.
"Have all our food been stored?"
"Sir, store everything. Cement has been poured on the roofs, and firebreaks have been set up between the grain areas. There are currently 57,000 people in the city, and we have enough food to last for a year and a half!"
"Where is our water source?"
“In Manila, the last thing you lack is water.”
"Where's our ammunition?"
"Twenty base loads of ammunition have been distributed to all combatants. The gunpowder warehouses are all built in semi-underground areas and are guarded by dedicated personnel. They are absolutely safe."
"Great, what else do we need to do now?"
"Sir, the Ming army is coming with great force. From the city wall, we can see the enemy fleet, which seems endless. Not to mention the Han people and the natives in the city. Even we Spanish, no, even we Europeans, are a little scared. So, if we really have to say what to do, I think the most important thing is to calm everyone down."
"You're right." Archduke Henry thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "Are there choirs in the churches in the city?"
"some."
"Very good. Bring them here; I have here a gospel poem which was composed by His Majesty Philip only last year."
…
"Captain, er, no, platoon leader, I can even see the red-haired devil's beard on the city wall."
"Hmph, that's just relying on telescopes. We have to find a way to get closer. The brothers of the Royal Guards haven't been to the trench opposite for more than a month. I don't know how many variables there are. We have to find out clearly... Eh? What's that sound?"
On the morning of September 28, when the officers of the Ming army were urging their men to continue transporting supplies and quickly deploying their troops, the Ming army scouts, who had advanced less than three miles to Manila, suddenly heard a hollow sound from the enemy's city wall.
Amazing Grace, How Sweet The Sound
That Saved a Wretch Like Me.
I Once Was Lost But Now I'm Found,
Was Blind But Now I See……
The Ming soldiers could not understand the lyrics of such a song. But for some reason, as the scouts listened, their hearts inexplicably calmed down.
And if Zhu Youdong were here and heard such a voice, he would probably smack his lips softly and then sigh: He is indeed a time traveler, we are all plagiarists.
