In addition, the forts and fortresses on the main island of Zhoushan are all made of cement and are extremely strong.
As long as the three or four thousand Ming troops were properly dispatched and prepared in advance, it would be impossible for the Qing army to take Zhoushan in a short while.
In the end, Zhoushan will probably become a tug-of-war!
Yu Taqin was brought to Zhao Erhu again, and Zhao Erhu spoke.
"Intelligence matters are considered a great achievement among the members!"
"If it weren't for Yu Yuanwai's intelligence, when the Qing army invaded, our Ming Dynasty's response would have been hasty."
Yu Taqin opened his mouth and said.
"This is what we, the people of Ming Dynasty, should do!"
Zhao Erhu nodded slightly and then said.
"The war in Zhoushan is about to begin. Yu Yuanwai can take his family to leave Zhoushan to avoid the war."
Yu Taqin nodded and said.
"Thank you for your understanding, Mr. Guard. The civilians are now preparing to send their families out of Zhoushan and head to Nanyang!"
"Prior to this, the common people are willing to donate 5,000 taels of military resources to support the state, boost the morale of the soldiers, and give a head-on blow to the invading Qing invaders!"
When Zhao Erhu heard this, his expression changed, and then he spoke.
"If that's the case, then I, the general, will replace the soldiers. Thank you so much for Yu Yuanwai's generosity!"
Although Yu Taqin gave the five thousand taels voluntarily, he still felt a little hurt.
After all, this is five thousand taels!
At this moment, Zhao Erhu spoke again.
"I will truthfully report Yuan Wai's contribution to the Ming Dynasty to His Highness the Supervisor. I believe His Highness the Supervisor will not treat Yuan Wai badly."
After Yu Taqin heard this, he felt a little better.
He thought, since he had made so many contributions to the Ming Dynasty, he should be able to change his position, right?
At this moment, a messenger rushed over and made an urgent report loudly.
"Report!"
"Reporting to the Lord Guards, our navy has encountered the Qing navy and they are fighting fiercely!"
…
Off the coast of Zhoushan, gunfire rumbles!
The Qing army's navy was moving towards Zhoushan in a dense mass of darkness.
The navy of the Ming army prepared to face the enemy!
Compared with the huge fleet of the Qing court, the Zhoushan fleet of the Ming army, which only had three ships, seemed quite thin.
However, compared with the Qing court's diverse fleet, most of which were inland river sampan boats.
The three large ships of the Ming army were all sailing battleships!
If they really set up a battle formation, the Ming army may not necessarily win, because after all, the numerical advantage of the Qing army's navy is there.
But it’s equally unlikely to lose!
The small guns on the Qing navy ships could not hit the Ming army's sail battleships.
The only thing that posed a certain threat to the Ming army's sail battleships was the naval guns on the British and Dutch battleships in the Qing fleet.
The distance between the two sides keeps getting closer!
Boom! Boom!
The small-caliber artillery placed on the deck of the Ming navy ship opened fire!
The rumbling sounds of artillery shelling sounded one after another, and the shells fell towards the Qing navy as if they were free of charge.
The cannonball entered the water and stirred up water columns, but it failed to hit the Qing warship!
The distance between the two sides continued to close, and the Ming army's fleet began to take advantage of its tonnage advantage and directly collided with the Qing navy's fleet.
A Qing court's flat-bottomed sand boat blocked the Ming army's sail battleship!
With a bang, the collision angle of the Ming army warship hit the Qing army sand ship.
With a click, the iron-clad collision angle hit the side of the sand ship mercilessly, and the wooden side of the ship instantly twisted and deformed.
A large hole was torn open in the hull of the ship, and seawater poured in quickly from the gap.
The sand ship began to sink rapidly. After it sank halfway, it was cut into two parts by the collision angle of the Ming warship.
Click! Click! Click!
The sound of the ship material breaking was unusually obvious.
Countless Qing sailors jumped ship to escape, and were then crushed under the hull of the Ming sail battleship.
Whether he can survive or not, no one knows!
The Ming army's warships rushed into the Qing army's naval formation like tigers entering a flock of sheep.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Not only did it use its own tonnage advantage to hit, the cannons on the side of the battleship also began to roar.
The battlefield was filled with smoke, and the cannonballs were tilted towards the Qing ships on both sides as if they were free of charge.
At close range, the power of the naval guns on the Ming army's warships was extremely astonishing!
The shells mercilessly smashed through the decks, sides, and masts of the Qing army ships, and smashed into the cabins.
Leaving big holes in the hull!
Some Qing ships were even sunk directly under the concentrated fire.
Shotguns and solid bullets are flying!
Boom! Boom!
The sound of shelling was heard one after another.
The sailors on the deck of the Ming army's warship lit the cannon, and with a bang, gunpowder smoke and dense clouds of shotguns flew out.
A large area of sailors on the deck of the Qing army's ship was swept away!
The Ming army's sailors loaded their muskets, sent out a neat formation, aimed at the Qing army's ships, and fired a volley.
Lead bullets are flying everywhere and gunpowder smoke is filling the air!
The densely packed projectiles hit the Qing army's ships, sending sawdust flying everywhere!
Shi Lang stood on his ship and ordered a counterattack.
"Fight back, fight back!"
"Fight back with all your strength and sink the Ming thief's warship!"
Boom! Boom!
The artillery on the Qing navy ships also began to fire.
The battlefield was quickly obscured by gunpowder smoke, and in the thick gunpowder smoke, artillery shells flew across the battlefield.
The artillery on the Qing army's ships were all small cannons and light cannons.
Even if the distance between the two sides was very close, the Qing army's artillery could not achieve obvious results.
The cannonballs were fired at the Ming army's warship, and the projectiles were deeply embedded in the hull, but they failed to cause any substantial damage to the structure of the ship.
The Dutch and British warships also opened fire. The sound of the cannons was dull, and shells the size of human heads were fired at the Ming warships.
boom!
A forty-eight-pound shell hit the side of the Ming army's ship. With a click, a large hole was opened in the side of the Ming army's ship.
The shells shot into the cabin, rolled and rotated, causing considerable damage to the sailors of the Ming army.
But that’s all!
The structure of the Ming army's warships was very strong, and such wounds did not affect their combat effectiveness.
Boom! Boom!
Throughout the sea area, the sound of shelling sounded continuously.
Commander Vanderlaan's ship was also hit by a shell, and the side of the ship was penetrated by the shell.
Sawdust was flying everywhere, and screams were heard one after another!
An artillery piece was also hit by a cannonball, and its body was twisted and deformed.
A cannonball flew over Vanderlaan's head and then hit the captain's cabin behind him.
Wood chips were flying everywhere, and a piece of wood flew over the thigh of the guard next to Vanderlaan, making a hole.
In an instant, large amounts of blood sprayed out!
Seeing the guards let out shrill screams, Vanderlan's face was full of fear.
There were wailing sounds everywhere on the battlefield!
Boom! Boom!
The artillery battle between the two sides continues!
The Ming army's naval guns were very powerful. Facing the Qing army's sampans, they basically killed a child with one shot.
But the ants killed the elephant, and under the siege of the Qing fleet, the three sail battleships of the Ming army did not fare well.
Even Wu Ming's own ship was interrupted to look at a mast.
The other two battleships were even more bruised and scarred.
The shells left very obvious marks on the hull.
However, although the artillery battle between the two sides was fierce, it did not last long.
The fleets of both sides are heading towards each other!
The Ming army passed through the Qing army's formation very quickly.
After passing through, the Ming fleet did not turn around and fight again according to past naval battle habits.
Instead, he simply hung up his sails and quickly left the battlefield.