Chapter 1667: Annihilating the Enemy at Sea
The best battlefield for war is enemy territory, the second best is neutral territory, and the worst case scenario is that it happens on our own territory. If you have to fight a decisive battle on your homeland, you should try to stop the enemy at sea.
——Zhao Hao, On War
Based on this principle, the theater staff's initial idea was to launch an expedition first, launch another surprise attack on Acapulco, and once again frustrate the Spanish expedition plan.
However, the expedition plan was soon aborted because the staff realized in the early stages of the discussion that it was impossible - the vast Pacific Ocean was an insurmountable barrier that the Coast Guard fleet could not currently cross.
So why were the Spanish able to launch the expedition? The reason is simple, because from the east coast to the west coast, there is a favorable wind and current, and the entire voyage can be completed in just two months, and the whole journey is calm.
But if you go east from the west coast, that is, the Ming Dynasty side, you must use the Kuroshio Current to go north to Ainu Island. Then take the North Pacific warm current eastward to North America, and then follow the California cold current southward to reach Acapulco.
Not only was the voyage much longer, but the sea conditions were a hundred times more complicated, and they often had to endure headwinds and huge waves. The entire journey took more than half a year. The mortality rate of Spanish sailors was as high as 30%. When coming to Luzon from New Spain, as long as there was no epidemic, the mortality rate would remain below 3%, a full ten times difference!
This was also the result that after the large sailing fleet arrived in North America, it was able to immediately dock in its colonies to rest, replenish supplies and repair ships.
Therefore, if the Coast Guard Fleet were to go on an expedition to New Spain, not only would it not be able to get support from the Spanish colonies, but it would also be difficult to avoid exposing its whereabouts, giving the Spanish fleet in Acapulco sufficient time to prepare for war.
In the absence of a generational gap in combat power between the two sides, an expedition would be tantamount to suicide. The staff officers who dared to make such a plan would be hanged on the mast by the angry captains.
However, after Lin Feng and others successfully completed the circumnavigation of the world, the coast guard force was filled with the ambition to reach for the moon in the sky and catch turtles in the five oceans.
Although the world is far away, if the enemy can go there, I can go there too!
To put it bluntly, everyone wanted to stand out and make great achievements. To put it nicely, under the control of romantic ideas, the young and daring staff members discussed and said that if we couldn't let the fleet go, we could go for reconnaissance ourselves, right?
Under their instigation, the General Staff Office and the Military Intelligence Office organized a small-scale expedition. Forty staff, intelligence and navigation personnel who volunteered to participate in the mission boarded two schooners carrying reconnaissance balloons and followed the Spanish galleon from Luzon to America.
The leader of this expedition team was Liu Yishou, deputy director of the Surveying and Mapping Department of the Military Intelligence Bureau of the General Headquarters. After completing the circumnavigation of the world with Lin Feng's fleet, this descendant of Liu Daxia volunteered to stay on the ship and vowed to draw a global sea chart to double compensate for the losses caused by his ancestor.
After the tempering of the round-the-world voyage, he had already been reborn, from a useless scholar to a determined and skilled seaman. He could also speak several Western languages. Zhao Hao naturally welcomed such a talent willing to join the team.
After sending him to the Coast Guard School for a simple military training, Zhao Hao specially approved Liu Yishou to be awarded two silver stars and become the deputy director of the Surveying and Mapping Department. Liu Yishou certainly would not miss the opportunity to explore the North Pacific route, so he took the initiative to lead the voyage team.
Relying on the route estimated by the young master and the help of the hot air balloon telescope, the expedition team tracked the Spaniards for four full months and finally crossed the Pacific Ocean and arrived at the North American continent, the place marked as San Francisco on Young Master Zhao's map but changed to New San Francisco by the British.
There, they carefully avoided the eyes and ears of the Spanish and ventured onto the sea to find the local indigenous Indian tribes.
With the glass beads and sugar they brought, they gained the friendship of the Miwok people who lived in the bay. Because the Miwok people were often captured by the Spanish to do forced labor, some of them could speak Spanish.
The smooth communication between the two sides would naturally help to enhance mutual trust. Liu Yishou followed Mr. Zhao's instructions and began to discuss relatives with the natives.
Relying on their common black hair and black eyes, as well as their research on ancient legends and texts, he successfully found common ground between the other party's beliefs and ancient Chinese mythology.
He told the Miwok people that the red-haired devils also knew that you migrated from China in ancient times. Otherwise, why would they call you "Indians"? That is the name that originated from our Chinese, the name for our disappeared Shang compatriots - "Yindi Anyang people"!
As a result, they successfully convinced the other party that they were from their hometown. We were all one family three thousand years ago!
The reason why the Miwok people believed them so easily was not only because what Liu Yishou said sounded reasonable, but also because both sides had a common enemy, the Red-haired Devils, and the Miwok people urgently needed the help of their allies to resist the powerful Spaniards.
Moreover, the level of civilization of these Ming people seemed to be higher than that of the red-haired devils. The Miwok people, who were still in the primitive tribal stage, naturally wanted to establish kinship with them, which would also make them feel proud and increase their sense of pride.
In short, in the end in San Francisco... oh no, the seven Miwok tribes in New San Francisco all recognized these Ming people as their relatives, and after accepting the "precious gifts" - glass balls and candies, as well as several Spanish muskets captured in the Battle of Luzon, they agreed to incorporate their territories into the Ming Dynasty.
At least in this era, the Indians were very simple, honest, warm and hospitable. After the two sides became a family, they took Liu Yishou's business as their own. They enthusiastically helped them repair the ship and supply, and also helped them to find out information and contact the tribes in the south.
Finally, they contacted the Wuchima people who lived on the islands in the Gulf of California. The Wuchima people were a rare island inhabitant among the indigenous peoples of North America. They made a living by fishing and could build wooden sailboats. Although they could not sail far, they were more than enough to fish along the coast.
The members of the sailing team disguised themselves as Uchima people, drove their wooden sailboats openly under the noses of the Spaniards, and went fishing in the waters of Acapulco every day.
Since the attack by Lin Feng, the Spanish have strengthened the defense of Acapulco Bay. They spared no expense, using iron chains and wooden boats to lock the three-kilometer-wide bay. There are also warships patrolling day and night to prevent any suspicious ships from approaching.
But this did not pose a problem for the team members. They released a small hot air balloon dozens of miles offshore and used telescopes to survey the harbor. At the same time, they used infiltration skills to sneak into the mountains surrounding Acapulco for close reconnaissance.
Two thin scouts even mixed in with the forcibly conscripted natives and entered the port to serve two months of labor.
Only then did they get a clear picture of the number of Spanish ships, tonnage, number of guns, troop strength, even the situation of the commander, and the scheduled departure date.
After discussion, Liu Yishou and others decided to send half of the people back on a boat to report the news, so that the country would have time to prepare for war in a targeted manner.
The other half stayed behind to continue monitoring in case the Spanish plan changed. They would set out with the Spanish, because the Spanish fleet had to maintain its formation, so they could return to Luzon at least half a month earlier...
~~
The information about the first ship was sent back to Ming Dynasty in March this year.
Therefore, the theater of operations had already grasped the Spanish troop strength and estimated departure time four months ago, which gave the General Staff sufficient time to formulate a combat plan.
These professionally trained combat staff were carefully selected from young police officers. They were all extremely smart and meticulous. As long as there was enough time, they could take into account all the factors, possibilities, and changes that could affect the battle situation without omission!
However, no matter how detailed and perfect the plans planned by the staff were, they were only tactical details. After all, wars were still commanded by people, and only a few people could decide on strategy.
How should this battle be fought in the end? We still have to wait for Zhao Hao to arrive and discuss with Generals Jin Ke and Wang Rulong to decide which one to implement from the pile of plans planned by the General Staff.
So after the joint meeting, Zhao Hao, the two of them and Ma Yinglong went straight into the operations room to discuss and decide on the final combat plan.
As always, in the center of the war room, there was a huge sand table of the Luzon Islands. On the wall hung the most accurate sea charts, from the largest-scale South China Sea map to each sea area of the Luzon Islands, there were separate large maps for the four people to refer to when making decisions.
As always, the operations room was filled with smoke, everyone had red eyes, unshaven beards, and a strange smell all over their bodies. They relied on cigarettes, strong tea and coffee to stay awake.
But all four of them were completely absorbed in looking through the battle plans that were scattered all over the table and floor; sometimes they were engaged in heated debates, trying to convince others, but usually no one could convince anyone else and it ended in an argument.
However, consensus was gradually formed through these arguments and debates.
The first consensus reached was to avoid the landing of the Spanish fleet at all costs!
If we can completely destroy them at sea, it will undoubtedly be most beneficial to our side.
However, given that there is not much difference between us and the enemy in terms of the number of warships and the number of troops. Although we are obviously better than the enemy in terms of the quality of ships, the number and quality of artillery, the quality of soldiers and training, it is not yet to the point of a generation gap.
In this situation, it is not difficult to defeat or even crush the enemy, but it is extremely difficult to wipe it out completely.
Once the 25,000 Spanish soldiers land, the war will suddenly become long and cruel.
It goes without saying that the coast guard was born for naval warfare, and land warfare is not their strong point.
Although the number of Marines under Wu Da's command had reached 10,000 after the Marines from the two garrison areas moved south to provide support, it was still far less than the enemy's.
Moreover, the castle built by the Spanish was very solid. Therefore, Zhao Hao had been trying his best to avoid sieges. When dealing with the Spaniards in the Royal City of Manila, he also burned down their granaries with fire, and then besieged them for several months, starving them all to death in the city...
How many Spanish troops were there in Manila at the time? How many troops were there in this expedition? Once they were allowed to land, there would be no conditions for a siege, and the consequences would be disastrous.
So no matter what the cost, we must destroy them at sea!
ps. Okay, okay, the idea is clear, the details are also figured out and there are no major problems. I’m excited and will start the battle tomorrow!
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
