Chapter 1362: King Shang Yuan's Shame
Amami Bay, on a hill labeled Hill 101.
Ximen Qing, who had been promoted to captain of the reconnaissance squadron, and several marines lay motionless in the dense grass. They wore coats with yellow-green cloth and hemp ropes, and even wore the same hats on their heads. The surroundings were also covered with leaves and grass. This was the camouflage technique learned in the land warfare class of the Coast Guard Academy, which can effectively segment the human body outline, simulate natural plants, and blend into the background dominated by weeds and shrubs.
The reconnaissance team he led was specifically responsible for monitoring the Ryukyu military camp at the foot of the mountain. In addition, there were more than a dozen reconnaissance teams scattered around the high ground to ensure that if any Ryukyu soldiers went up the mountain to guard, they would be discovered at the first time.
He planned that if the number of Ryukyu soldiers coming was small, he would use short crossbows to eliminate them silently. If there were too many, he would remind the main force not to be exposed as much as possible... Ximen Qing surveyed the terrain and deployed troops according to the manual, and also formulated a contingency plan.
But who would have thought that at this point, not a single Ryukyu soldier had gone up the mountain!
The threat to the Marines lurking in the highlands actually came from mosquitoes and poisonous snakes on the mountain...
"What the hell is going on here?" Ximen Qing slapped the mosquito on his neck and cursed inwardly. Even if they were pirates, they would know to send someone to keep watch! Why are these Ryukyu people so arrogant? His plan was all in vain.
Little did they know that King Shang Yuan had already killed the bandit chieftain on the island and recruited the young and strong men into the royal army. The remaining old, weak, sick, disabled, women and children posed no threat at all. King Shang Yuan, who loved his soldiers like his own sons, naturally did not force the soldiers to stand guard on the hills four or five miles away.
They were about to sail home. What if they ran too far and landed on a large island and were eaten by the natives? Therefore, the Ryukyu soldiers consciously patrolled only near the camp.
Work should be done in front of the leader!
But who could have imagined that there were enemies on the other side of the mountain?
~~
"Captain, why haven't they set off yet..." The scout next to him was also getting impatient. "My legs are numb from squatting."
"I guess their leader is just like Instructor Liu, both of them are talkative." Ximen Qing said something to the police instructor who was working with him, and continued to monitor with binoculars. Suddenly he shouted in a low voice: "That's it, boarding begins! Quick, send a signal!"
The scout quickly and quietly retreated to the hillside, took out a small mirror, and reflected the dazzling sunlight from the Pacific Ocean toward the warship waiting silently in the fjord.
There were lookouts on each warship who were watching the high ground. When they saw the signal, they would immediately start to weigh anchor and cast off the cables, preparing to set off.
When the scout sent the signal for the second time, it meant that the Ryukyu army had boarded the ship, and the fleet weighed anchor and set sail, ready to set sail.
"Raise the sails!" Haierdi gave an order, and the police officers on Ship 102 took the lead in turning the noose and slowly raising the sails one by one.
Ship 102 was a Western-style warship modeled after the Oriental Beauty. Soon, more than a dozen sails were blown up in the wind, pushing the warship slowly towards the bay.
Seeing this, the other warships also raised their sails and followed the 102nd ship with the help of the wind!
The geography course at the Coast Guard School taught them that Ryukyu was controlled by the Pacific subtropical high pressure, and the southeast monsoon prevailed in summer! So Wang Rulong deployed the first-line blocking cluster in Jinjiubang to occupy the upper wind so that the fleet could start quickly and arrive in place quickly!
The 1st Marine Battalion, which was ambushed on the northern slope of Hill 101, also began to descend the mountain in an orderly manner from the southern side of the hill and marched quickly towards the natural harbor on the other side of Amami Bay.
The scorching sun over the Pacific Ocean shines unobstructed onto the earth.
In such a hot day, the Marines were still able to run as fast as flying, even though they were carrying nearly 30 kilograms of guns, ammunition, rockets, water bottles, dry food bags and other equipment. This was all thanks to the strict training they received on weekdays, especially when they were in the Coast Guard School, where they had a five-kilometer armed cross-country race every day.
"Hurry up, hurry up and catch up!" Marine Battalion Captain Wu Da also marched with his subordinates. He swung his long legs and led the way easily, shouting loudly: "Brothers, it's not easy for us Marines to show our faces. No one is allowed to hold us back! Speed up and occupy the position!"
"Yes!" The Marines responded in unison and sped up again.
~~
On the sea, the Ryukyu fleet was using oars and sails to escort King Shang Yuan's ship towards the mouth of the bay.
Strong ocean currents and monsoons are great assists, but they become a huge obstacle on the return journey, so Ryukyu ships are equipped with eight to twelve oars and paddles to ensure that they can sail back to Naha.
The Ryukyu King's ship, the 'Sanshan Yitong', was equipped with twenty oars and paddles. Each oar was rowed by four rowers, and each paddle was rowed by two rowers. Otherwise, it would not be enough to drive such a large warship.
King Shang Yuan was dressed in military uniform, with an umbrella over his head, standing on the deck of the Sanshan Yitong ship with high spirits, and he felt that the whole world was at his feet.
"Except for the Celestial Empire's Fengzhou, there is no ship bigger than the Sanshan Yitong Ship, right?" he said proudly to those around him.
Ma Deshun and others flattered him: "Of course, my king is the king of the East China Sea!"
"The small boats of North Korea and Japan are not enough to carry the king's shoes..."
"After all, my Zhongshan Kingdom is the most favored one in the Celestial Empire!"
Everyone was flattering the king when suddenly the king's face changed and he looked straight ahead, as if he had seen a ghost.
"What's going on..." Ma Deshun and others turned their heads and saw a huge sailing ship appearing at the mouth of Amami Bay in front of them. It was at least twice as large as the Sanshan Istong ship!
Then, the second and third ships came, two more warships of the same size!
It’s not over yet! Behind the three behemoths, there were two teams of 2,000-ton large ships that were half the size of the Sanshan Yitong ship!
Four, five, six… eight, nine, ten… nineteen, twenty…
The King of Ryukyu and his princes silently counted the huge warships. Before they finished counting, the commander of the Ryukyu navy, Xie Liting, brought them back to reality from their shock.
"Please enter the cabin quickly, my king. We are ready to fight!"
The princes looked at the king, but saw that Shang Yuan was still motionless. They couldn't help but secretly admire that the king was really calm in the face of danger.
After a while, he finally said with relief: "So there are thirty-three ships..."
Everyone almost fell to the ground. Good guy, they were still counting...
"What did you just say?" Shang Yuan came back to his senses and asked Xie Liting.
"I have already ordered the fleet to stop advancing and prepare to meet the enemy. Whether to advance or retreat is up to the king to decide!" Xie Liting had to say it again.
"Oh." Shang Yuan thought for a while and said, "Let's get in touch with them first and ask them what they want to do."
"Yes." Xie Liting immediately ordered his men to lower the small boat and go forward with a white flag.
~~
At the mouth of the bay, the blocking cluster was slowly forming a formation.
To be honest, Haierdi was most worried that the Ryukyu warships would speed up and rush out as soon as they discovered him - they were paddle boats and had the ability to accelerate instantly.
Although it was still a delivery, the group had not yet put up a strong fence, so it was inevitable that a large number of fish would slip through the net. If ten or eight of them escaped, would I be reduced to a police officer?
Fortunately, probably because Wang was on the boat, the enemy stopped immediately, which allowed the cluster to calmly complete the double battle line formation, set up a fence, and exert maximum firepower.
When the battle line was basically completed, a small boat with a white flag sailed out from the opposite side. A man on the boat wearing a yellow square hat and a green robe claimed to be a messenger from the King of Ryukyu.
Haierdi asked someone to bring him on board.
When the other party came up to him tremblingly, he introduced himself first and said that he was Mei Shimang, the third-rank official of Zhongshan State and the ear-eye officer of the imperial court. He was specially ordered by the king to inquire about your origins and why you blocked our way.
Although they were here to invade, the Coast Guard Fleet must not lose its dignity as an upright force. Haierdi told him in a deep voice:
"I am the commander of the Ming Dynasty's Royal Tamra Garrison's Southbound Task Force. I have been ordered to intercept you here and bring troops to punish you! In order to avoid meaningless damage, you are ordered to surrender immediately without delay, otherwise you will bear the consequences!"
Mei Shimang was frightened when he saw these uninvited guests, who were well-equipped and dressed in blue uniforms, which were very different from the Ming army. He was relieved when he heard this and said with a smile, "So they are the subordinates of our emperor. This is really a flood that has washed away the Dragon King Temple. Is there something wrong?"
"Nothing is wrong." Haierdi said with a straight face, "We have informed you in a formal document two and a half months ago that you must earnestly implement our four demands and give an explanation for the 'Naha Port Massacre'. Otherwise, we will regard your country as an accomplice of the bandits and take severe action!"
"The deadline we gave was the end of May, and now it's mid-July, and you're still indifferent." Haierdi said sternly, "We will naturally come as promised and seek justice for our brothers who died!"
"This, this is a huge misunderstanding..." Mei Shimang was the spy officer of Ryukyu, so he was naturally sharp-eyed and sharp-eared, and he quickly explained: "The superior has seen it, our king has been on a military expedition, and is only returning to the court today. Please be flexible and open a way for our king to go. When our king returns to Shuri, we will immediately investigate the case and give an explanation to the superior of the Celestial Empire and the Jiangnan Group!"
"It's too late. Our ultimatum has passed, and we cannot go back on our word." Haierdi said in a deep voice: "I order you to surrender immediately before noon, otherwise we will launch an attack!"
"You can't do this. My king is a vassal king of the Celestial Empire, which makes him like the grandson of the Emperor. How can you resort to force against my king?!" Mei Shimang protested.
"If you really think of yourself as a vassal king of the Celestial Empire, you wouldn't be so indifferent to our ultimatum." Haierdi snorted coldly, reminding him kindly: "I am only following orders, and I have no power to act on my own. I advise you not to waste time here, but to go back and inform your king as soon as possible."
As he said this, he pointed to the sun in the sky.
"This, alas..." Mei Shimang had no choice but to go.
After he returned to the Sanshan Yitong fleet and reported the situation to King Shangyuan, Ma Deshun and others hurriedly advised: "Please ask the king to withdraw to the island first and leave the navy to confront them. If it takes too long, the other side will leave on their own."
King Shang Yuan thought about it and realized that it was too dangerous to be on the sea. The enemy's ship was full of cannons, and it would be a disaster if they accidentally injured him.
He was just about to make a false excuse, saying that he wanted to live and die with his soldiers to save face.
Then the naval commander Xie Liting cried out again, "My lord, look at the shore!"
King Shang Yuan looked in the direction of the sound and saw an army dressed in green clothes appearing at the harbor where they had departed from. Their intentions were obvious...
The four words "turtle in a jar" suddenly appeared in King Shang Yuan's mind, making him feel panic and inexplicable shame.
ps. There will be three updates tomorrow.
(End of this chapter)