Zhang Yuliang walked into the Southeast Governor's Mansion after a long journey.
The decree of King Qin Su He has arrived in Guangzhou.
The Southeast Governor's Office was established, with Su Xiong as governor and Zhang Yuliang and Li Qingmu as deputy governors.
"Commander Zhang is back. Did the battle go well?"
Su Xiong stood up to greet Zhang Yuliang with a smile on his face.
Zhang Yuliang replied easily: "This trip went very smoothly and there was no tough battle.
A very small part of the Daming Navy here in Guangdong surrendered to us, and most of them fled to Qiongzhou Prefecture.
There are basically no Ming naval forces staying in the harbor, waiting for our attack.
We don't have a navy. We want to catch a navy who can escape. How is this possible?
Those people from the Guangzhou Navy can't defeat us, they can just sail away.
Commander Li Qingmu wants to surrender the Daming Navy and let them serve as grassroots soldiers of the South China Sea Fleet. This idea is basically impossible to realize.
The South China Sea Fleet still needs to train its own grassroots soldiers.
The soldiers you have trained yourself will feel more confident when using them."
Su Xiong said: "The Ming Navy just ran away. We hold the port in our hands and train the navy soldiers, so it won't be difficult.
There are dense rivers here in Guangdong, and there are many people with good water skills.
The Ming Dynasty banned the sea, and not many people went to sea, but there were some who could always be selected and trained into the navy."
Zhang Yuliang took out a stack of official documents.
"I have inspected the coast near Guangzhou and marked the places where forts can be built to protect the sea.
Now we can ask the Governor's Office to make arrangements to build a concrete fort using the cement and steel bars delivered.
The fortress guns are too difficult to transport, so we should wait for the craftsmen from Hanzhong and Sichuan to support us, set up the Guangzhou Arsenal, and let them manufacture the fortress guns in Guangzhou City."
Zhang Yuliang and Su Xiong settled official matters, and he asked: "The troops from the rear have arrived in Guangzhou City one after another.
I saw Honeysuckle, the governor of Guangdong, was inspecting Guangzhou City, and all the governor's offices were open for business.
Screen the surrendered Guangdong officials and arrange for them to take up their posts.
Li Qingmu, Governor Li, why didn't you see him?
The naval ships and ports I captured still need to be handed over to the navy.
After finishing these things, I will go to Chaozhou Prefecture, where the Eighth Army headquarters is located.
The main force of the Eighth Army will also be transferred to Chaozhou Prefecture to guard against the Ming Army in the direction of Fujian."
"Li Qingmu went to the coastal areas, inspected the terrain, and chose a port for the South China Sea Fleet.
It will take some time before he can return to Guangzhou City.
The relevant information was handed over to me, and when he came back, I personally completed the handover work with him.
You go to Chaozhou Prefecture as soon as possible. The news from the secret guards is that Emperor Chongzhen's imperial edict has been issued to southern Zhili, Fujian, Jiangxi and other areas.
The Ming army in the north has been frightened by us and dare not take the initiative to attack us.
The Ming army in the south had never suffered.
If these people want to test me, I will beat them back hard.
We must digest Guangdong and Guangxi, turn Guangdong and Guangxi into our base, and provide us with a steady stream of weapons and supplies.
Everything is shipped from Sichuan and Hanzhong. The cost is too high and it cannot support large-scale operations.
We are now unable to continue to expand due to a shortage of logistical supplies.
But there is no problem at all in fighting a few small-scale battles.”
Zhang Yuliang nodded seriously. If the Ming army really dared to attack his army, he would definitely lead the army and make the Ming army remember it.
Zhang Yuliang handed over all relevant information to Su Xiong, who was preparing to go to Chaozhou Prefecture.
Su Xiong remembered something and called Zhang Yuliang.
"Commander Zhang, have you recovered the trench mirror?"
King Su He of Qin wrote a private letter to Su Xiong, asking him to recover Haojing at all costs.
The land of China is not allowed to be invaded by foreigners, and no piece of land is redundant.
Su Xiong didn't know why Qin King Su He paid attention to Xiangshan County, a port similar to an ordinary town.
Su Xiong himself could not understand, but he insisted on carrying out the order given by King Su He of Qin.
It's just a small port. No matter how powerful the red-haired man is, he can still block the attack of the army.
He could kill these people with just shells without fuses.
He didn't know how King Su He of Qin knew about this port.
The Portuguese called this place Macau, a name that few people in the city of Guangzhou know.
People in Guangdong call this place Haojing.
Hao is a homophone for oyster, and oysters and other seafood are abundant there.
Mirror means that the sea there is like a mirror.
Now the official name of the Qin Palace is Haojing.
Zhang Yuliang shook his head and said: "Where is the trench mirror?
Xiangshan County!
I don’t know much about this matter, Lu Chenyang’s department is in charge of it in Xiangshan County.”
"Well, I'll find out for myself."
Guangdong is already stable and there is no major war.
Su Xiong has already completed the statistical reports on soldiers' meritorious service, the promotion arrangements for officers, and the treatment and discharge of wounded soldiers.
These matters can be formally implemented pending the approval of the Central Governor's Office.
The martyrs who died in battle also established a grand ancestral temple in Guangzhou City, and they were all placed in the Martyrs' Pavilion.
The Governor's Mansion has special personnel to deliver the relics to the martyrs' homes.
All major matters here in Guangdong have been taken care of, and other military officers in the Southeast Governor's Office can also handle some minor matters.
Su Xiong is planning to go to Xiangshan County to see for himself.
The Qin King Su He personally explained the matter of the Haojing. The tone of the letter was very serious and the attitude was very resolute.
He wants to personally supervise this matter and do it beautifully.
Su Xiong thought that Wang Bonuo had also come to Guangzhou City and had come into contact with Haojing.
Before he went to Xiangshan County, he asked Wang Bonuo to go with him.
Wang Bonuo also speaks Cantonese and can understand a little bit of Western language. He can also serve as a temporary translator.
…………………………
Su Xiong took a warship and headed to Xiangshan County by sea.
This warship was one of the few warships they captured from the Ming Navy.
The Navy thought these warships were too small and planned to build large sailing warships.
All the artillery on this warship were replaced by Qin army's artillery.
With thirty-two field guns, this warship has enough firepower. In naval battles, it is not afraid of the warships of the Ming Navy.
There are also coastal defense forts at the mouth of the Pearl River, and the Ming Navy no longer dares to go deep into the Pearl River.
The three warships formed a complete shape and headed towards the southern part of Xiangshan County.
Su Xiong met with Wang Bonuo on the deck of the flagship.
Ask him about the situation in Macau.
"Mr. Wang, listening to what you said, it is basically impossible for the Portuguese to voluntarily give up Macau."
Wang Bonuo said in an extremely sure tone: "I didn't understand these Westerners at first.
I thought they were all the same people, but after living in Haojing for a while, I realized that these Xiyi people were also divided into several different factions.
The most powerful ones are the Spanish, Dutch, and Portuguese.
The Spanish occupied Luzon and the Dutch occupied parts of Java.
In the area surrounding Guangdong, the Spanish and Dutch divided the island of Taiwan opposite Fujian.
The Portuguese's power is even smaller. They only have a small territory like Haojing, and they will never let it go.
When the Portuguese lost their trench mirror, they were driven out of China.
They would not be able to obtain tea, silk, porcelain and other commodities that the Westerners urgently need."
When Su Xiong listened to Wang Bonuo's story, he discovered that the Western Yi people had been able to travel thousands of miles by boat from distant places to carve up the land near China.
Taiwan Island, which has belonged to China since ancient times and was occupied by Soochow during the Three Kingdoms period, has now been divided up by the Western Yi people.
No wonder King Su He of Qin wanted to vigorously develop the navy.
The Western Yi people have already arrived at our doorstep. If we don't open our eyes to see the world, we can only dream of the heavenly kingdom.
The fleet soon reached the south of Xiangshan County.
Lu Chenyang, commander of the First Division, received the news.
He personally came to greet Su Xiong and others.
When Lu Chenyang saw Su Xiong disembarking from the boat, he scratched his head and said, "Commander, we have captured the entire Guangzhou Prefecture.
The Ming navy and some pirates often came ashore to harass them.
I stay here in Xiangshan County to protect the personnel building the fort from being attacked by the Ming navy and pirates."
"Lu Chenyang, have you laid the trench mirror?" Su Xiong asked.
"Where is Haojing? I've never heard of this county."
Lu Chenyang asked with a puzzled look.
He has written down all the counties south of Guangzhou Prefecture and is sure that he has received the report.
Their first division occupied all the county towns, and then notified the Southeast Governor's Office that they had occupied all areas south of Guangzhou City.
In his memory, there is no county in Guangzhou called Haojing.
Su Xiong looked at Lu Chenyang's performance and was not surprised at all.
If Qin King Su He hadn't specifically reminded him of the small port of Haojing, he wouldn't have cared about it.
Su Xiong opened the map and pointed out the location of the trench mirror.
When Lu Chenyang saw where Hao Jing was, he lowered his head and whispered:
"I haven't paid much attention to this port. It's not far from the trench mirror. I'll go and take a look in person."
"Let's go to Haojing together and take a look at the situation there."
Su Xiong said in a calm tone.
He did not rebuke Lu Chenyang, did not explain in advance, and there was no heavy Ming army gathering in Haojing.
No division commander would pay attention to the gains and losses of this small seaport.
Wang Bonuo was walking on the official road of Xiangshan County and said with emotion: "Last time I came here, I had to be careful and speak Cantonese.
Disguised as a native of Guangdong, for fear of being discovered by the Ming Dynasty officials.
It’s much easier now.”
"Mr. Wang, how is the military strength at Haojing?
Do these Portuguese people have money?" Su Xiong asked curiously.
“There are a lot of ships coming and going in Haojing, especially Western-style sail warships.
Each of these battleships has dozens to hundreds of cannons.
The strength of the battleship is much stronger than that of the Ming Navy.
The Portuguese had a strong navy and a very small army.
Their army used flintlock guns, which was not as good as the Qin army.
There are many transport ships in Haojing.
The load of a ship can be more than ten times greater than the large ships we usually see in the river.
Large ships at sea can transport a lot of things at one time. They are faster than land transportation and have lower losses during transportation.
In my impression, Haojing is very prosperous, with a large number of ships coming and going every day.
Every ship can bring huge income to the Portuguese.
The Portuguese like tea, porcelain and silk very much.
They also loved the mirror I shipped there.
I think these Portuguese people spend a lot of money, and they are also extremely wealthy people.
These people are richer than the gentry in Guangzhou."
After Su Xiong heard what Wang Zhongce said, he had some impressions of the Portuguese.
The Portuguese are good at naval warfare, and warships are their guarantee of force.
If a military conflict occurs, we must find a way to deal with the Portuguese warships as soon as possible.
Su Xiong and his party arrived at the southernmost tip of Xiangshan County. In front of them was the trench mirror.
Arriving here with them were the artillery regiment of the 1st Division and the 1st Brigade, nearly five thousand soldiers.
…………………………
"Lord Luo Langye, the Qin army has sent heavy troops to surround Macau on three sides."
The Governor of Macau, Luo Lang, also frowned and listened to the situation reported by the messenger.
Andre, the church pastor, kept praying.
"May the Lord bless us."
Luo Lang also frowned and said, "How could this be? There was a civil war in the Ming Dynasty. A force called the Qin Army came some time ago to drive away the Ming army."
Pastor Andry closed his eyes and said, "That's for sure. The Ming army is holding swords, and this Qin army is carrying muskets.
An army with muskets should defeat an army with swords. This is not what it should be."
Luo Lang also sighed and said: "This is scary, the natives who are not afraid of swords.
This way we can always occupy Macau.
An army with muskets is very scary.
The Qin army has already used muskets, and now they are besieging the city with heavy troops. I wonder what they want to do?"
Soon another messenger came in with a letter.
Luo Lang also opened the letter.
"This is a letter from King Bonuo. We have done transactions with him before, but we didn't expect that he was from the Qin Army.
He explained in his letter that we should abandon Macau and surrender to the Qin army, but we did not agree before noon.
The Qin army will attack us."
Pastor Andry said while praying: "This is a treasure land given to us by God, and the Lord will never forgive us for giving it up."
"I will prepare the soldiers for battle."
For colonists like them, it is completely impossible to get them to give up their colonies just by pressing down the border with a large army.
Without a fight of blood and fire, they would never give up any colony.
Each colony can bring them huge profits.
Macau is right next to the prosperous place of Ming Dynasty.
You can get a lot of tea, silk, and porcelain, which are extremely valuable things in Europe.
…………………………
"Mr. Wang, I have promised you to postpone the attack on the trench mirror. Now the time has come and our army is going to launch an attack."
Su Xiong agreed to Wang Bonuo's request, mainly because he heard Wang Bonuo say that there were a large number of craftsmen among the Portuguese in Haojing.
They mastered many Western technologies such as sailing battleships.
Capturing these Portuguese would be helpful in obtaining some advanced Western technology.
"The rocket launchers used heavy fire shells and aimed at the harbor area, trying to knock out the Portuguese warships as much as possible.
Other rocket launchers fired freely, knocking out Portuguese troops, the Governor's Palace and churches.
There is no need to attack the civilian areas, we need to capture some craftsmen."
The hot air balloon has already taken off and is constantly reporting the coordinates of the Haojing area through the telescope.
The artillery regiment heard Su Xiong's order and they adjusted the impact point of the rockets.
Each rocket launcher aims at the same coordinates.
Twelve rockets, they fell scattered.
The shooting accuracy of rockets is not high, and they use saturation strikes. As long as you are not unlucky, one of them will always hit the target.
Su Xiong heard that the artillery regiment was ready, and he gave the order to open fire.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The distinctive sound of rockets taking off sounded.
After the fire bomb hits the ground, the mixture of kerosene and sugar sticks to people or objects and burns violently.
The high temperature generated by the fire bombs can burn even steel, let alone wooden buildings and warships.
The church in Haojing was hit by a fire bomb, and it burned violently.
The fire produced by the combustion is not the most deadly. A lot of the smoke produced by the combustion floats upward, and it does not cause too many casualties.
A large number of violent fire bombs burned, directly consuming the nearby oxygen.
If a person is in an environment without oxygen, even if he is hiding in the safest secret room, he will die of suffocation.
The warships moored in the trench were hit by concentrated fire and bombs.
The powerful sail warship burst into flames in an instant.
The fire from the fierce bombs could not be extinguished by pouring water, and these sailing battleships were quickly burned to ashes.
There were only a few small cargo ships, which responded quickly and fled the port in a panic.
The trench mirror has turned into a sea of flames, and thick smoke is rising.
After the thick smoke cleared, soldiers from the 1st Brigade of the 1st Division rushed into the trench mirror and quickly occupied all areas of the trench mirror.
The Portuguese who did not die, a small number of other Westerners, and the Han Chinese who worked for the Portuguese were all sent to the prison camp in Xiangshan County.
