The Strait of Magellan is located at the southernmost tip of the South American continent. It is surrounded by islands such as Tierra del Fuego. It was named because Magellan first passed through here to enter the Pacific Ocean during his circumnavigation of the world.

It is as winding as a goat intestine, nearly 600 kilometers long, and only 3.3 kilometers at its narrowest point. It is very difficult to navigate, but it is the most important natural waterway between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific.

In fact, in the eyes of navigators of this era, the Strait of Magellan was also the only channel connecting the two oceans.

This idea also originated from Magellan, who believed that the "Tierra" south of the strait was the starting point of a continent.

Since the ancient Greek era, there has been a popular conjecture in Europe that there should be a continent of equal size in the south of the world, across the sea from the Eurasian continent. Otherwise, the world would be in an unbalanced state whether it is a plane or a sphere.

This hypothetical continent was named the 'Southern Continent'. Magellan believed that the 'Tierra' he saw was the legendary Southern Continent. So this strait was the only passage between the two continents. This cognition was so deeply rooted that it had become common sense for European navigators.

The reason for this is that, on the one hand, the violent westerly winds make exploration to the south full of dangers; on the other hand, and most importantly, a narrow waterway like the Strait of Magellan has natural defensive advantages and much lower control costs.

In view of this, the Spanish were more willing to let the world believe that the south of the strait was a "southern continent" that was always cold and dark, and that only through the strait controlled by the Spanish could the Atlantic and Pacific routes be opened. Over time, even they themselves believed it.

For example, Admiral Leon, after confirming that he had surpassed the Ming fleet in Salvador, did not stay in this hostile Portuguese colony for long, but went directly south to Argentina. After making sufficient supplies there, he led the fleet into the Strait of Magellan and stationed in Port Hambray.

Port Hambray is a stronghold established by the Spanish on the east side of the Channel. Due to its remote location, all supplies here are basically shipped by sea from Argentina or Chile. Sometimes the sea conditions are bad and no ships arrive for several months, so food is often scarce. It is called the 'Starving Port' or 'Famine Port' by the colonists.

The Spanish paid a high price to maintain the southernmost foothold in the world, but they believed that it was all worth it, because in their view, controlling the Strait of Magellan would keep those hateful European pirates out of the Pacific Ocean.

In this way, the tens of thousands of miles of coastline in South America, Central America, and North America would not need to be defended, saving a lot of money both inside and outside!

~~

Of course, the Ming people could also have sailed eastwards and returned to Asia around the Cape of Good Hope. Not to mention that this possibility was extremely small...they were aiming to sail around the world, and they had already traveled most of the way, so how could they give up halfway?

And it didn't matter even if they went east, because Spain had sent another powerful fleet of sailing ships, which had already arrived at Cape Town and guarded the only way for the Ming people to go east.

Although Admiral Leon had suggested in his letter that it would be best to send another fleet to ensure that nothing could go wrong, the Admiral did not expect that His Majesty would agree... You can imagine how angry His Majesty was; you can imagine how much of a blow the hijacking of the treasure ship was to the royal family.

This made Admiral Leon feel inexplicably fearful. He couldn't imagine what fate would await him if he failed to catch those damn Ming pirates.

Therefore, when the Spanish spies in Rio sent him information that the Ming people had already gone east to Africa, out of caution, he still chose to continue to defend the Strait of Magellan.

What if it was a smokescreen from the Ming people? What if they changed their minds midway? Or what if they hit a snag at the Cape of Good Hope and turned back?

In short, in order to ensure that everything is safe, he decided to stay here for a few months and wait for news from the Cape of Good Hope.

There is another psychological layer that is not known to outsiders, that is, he is full of fear of returning. Before receiving a letter from his family telling him that the alarm has been lifted, he dare not rashly return to Madrid to face the anger of His Majesty.

"In addition, it is certain that the Ming people sold all the looted goods in Moldova and Rio de Janeiro." Colonel Tiago, who had been traveling south with him since the news was reported.

"That's for sure. Their goods will be worthless if they are shipped back to the Far East." The admiral held his pipe, his beard messy in the cold sea breeze. He tightened his cloak and said, "Don't worry about those greedy half-Jews for now. When I catch the Ming people, I will make them spit out their money with interest!"

"That way we can not only recover our losses but also make a fortune, which will definitely appease His Majesty's anger." The colonel, who shared the same suffering, said happily.

"Yes, for the sake of money, His Majesty will choose to forgive us." The admiral sighed and lowered his voice, "His Majesty urgently needs to repay the loan he borrowed from foreign bankers at an excessively high interest rate. As long as we can help him solve his urgent problem, everything can be discussed."

"As long as we can catch that Ming fleet, we will definitely be able to do it! I heard that they replaced the entire ship with Brazilian rosewood in Rio!" The colonel gritted his teeth, as his money was also in it.

"They must not go to Kapu's!"

~~

The admiral's wait and the colonel's nagging were not in vain. On March 15, 1576, Lin Feng's fleet arrived at the sea outside the Strait of Magellan.

But to be cautious, Lin Feng did not sail into the strait immediately, but instead dropped anchor in a bay in the southern part of the strait.

Because the wind speed on the sea surface could not drop below level 6 and the hot air balloon could not be released for detection, she wanted to wait until dark and personally take a small boat to the strait for detection.

In addition to investigating whether the Spanish were still there, it was more important to find out the route of the strait. How could we rush in in the dark? What if we collided with them?

But Zhang Xiaojing reminded her that they were almost at the South Pole, and the nights were extremely short in this season. The boat she sent out would be bright before it went far into the strait.

"Why do I feel like I'm not getting enough sleep lately?" Lin Feng snorted and tightened her leather jacket, which Zhang Xiaojing had purchased in Rio and she had just put it to use.

Giving up the idea of ​​sending a small boat for reconnaissance, Lin Feng thought for a moment and decided to lead a reconnaissance team himself, land on the east coast of Tierra del Fuego, and scout the situation in the strait on foot.

According to the intelligence gathered in Rio, although it is somewhat strange, the Spanish did not set foot in Tierra del Fuego and only established a base on the north coast.

Although it is not normal for a fleet commander to risk his life, this is Lin Feng's leadership style. The more dangerous the situation, the more she rushes to the front. This is how she built her prestige. Do you really think she got it by whipping?

Zhang Xiaojing couldn't stop them, so she had to send another team of Marines to protect her.

Lin Feng took about 20 people and rowed two small boats to Tierra del Fuego...

~~

This damn place, Tierra del Fuego, is really abnormal. It is already bright before three in the morning, and it is not dark even at ten in the evening.

This made it convenient for Lin Feng to travel.

After landing, she left six people to watch the boat and took the rest of the group onto the soft and difficult tundra.

In one day, Lin Feng led the reconnaissance team and walked a full 180 miles, crossed the northern corner of Tierra del Fuego, and finally arrived at the Strait of Magellan.

In fact, she didn't need to go to the beach, she could already see the masts in the strait from more than ten miles away.

She approached quietly and looked through the telescope, and indeed found the Spanish galleon cruising in the strait. Lin Feng then walked more than ten miles under the cover of the hills and finally found the Hambray Port on the other side. She counted them, and including the large sailing ships on duty, there were eighteen ships, not one less.

Obviously this was the fleet that had chased us from the Caribbean, and judging from their appearance, they didn't seem to be leaving any time soon.

"Could it be that the news of our heading east has not arrived yet?" The scouts all looked unhappy.

"Bullshit, it's been two months, how could it not be transmitted?" Lin Feng spat and said, "Don't count on taking this road, go back."

Having said that, he walked back the way he came without looking back.

Unfortunately, they encountered a group of Fuego natives on their way back. They thought they were the hateful colonists, so without saying a word they rushed towards them with spears and bows and arrows.

One team member wanted to explain, "Fellow countryman, we are not red-haired devils." But Lin Feng kicked him on the buttocks and said:

"Do they understand? Run away, boy!"

Lin Feng led his team members and ran wildly under the sun that seemed to never set.

The natives were also stubborn. They didn't know what evil the Spanish had done, but they just kept chasing them. They chased them for a whole day and all the way to the beach.

Lin Feng almost lost her soul. After all the team members were on the boat, she fired a shot into the sky. While the natives were frightened and lay prone, she was pulled onto the boat by her men.

"Hurry up, start the boat!" Lin Feng looked up at the sky out of breath, panting heavily, "But I'm so fucking tired..."

~~

After returning to the Liu Daxia and telling his men about the situation, the crew suggested heading east to Africa, but Lin Feng, who had recovered, scolded them.

"Are you stupid, stupid, or really stupid? The red-haired devils have already received the news that we are heading east, but they are still standing here without moving. This means that they have also made arrangements at the Cape of Good Hope!"

"That's right, otherwise there is no point for them to be here." Zhang Xiaojing nodded in agreement.

"Damn it, I'm so proud that I actually sent two fleets to serve me!" Lin Feng took a sip of wine and said in a deep voice to his subordinates who were at a loss:

"There is only one solution now - don't go through the Strait of Magellan, go south around Tierra del Fuego and reach the Pacific Ocean!"

On the title page of "A Brief History of Nature", there is a world map drafted by Zhao Hao and polished by Ma Xianglan. It clearly shows that there is indeed an ice-covered continent south of South America, but the two are separated by a long distance.

Therefore, the Strait of Magellan is not the only passage between the two oceans, and "Tierra" is not the starting point of the southern continent, but the real end point of the South American continent.

In fact, if you follow the entrance of the strait a few hundred kilometers south, you will find that "Tierra del Fuego" should be called Tierra del Fuego, and there is an endless ocean to the south of it. So you can go around it and return to the Pacific Ocean.

But Zhao Hao had emphasized during their special training before they set off that they should not take this route unless it was absolutely necessary...

ps. No more tonight.