1649, the year of Ji Chou, was the seventh year of Qi's reign in Hanzhou, the fourth year of Yongchu in the Ming Dynasty, and the sixth year of Shunzhi of the Qing Dynasty.

After the Peace of Westphalia was signed in October last year (1648), the war that had filled the European continent for thirty years was completely extinguished in the new year, and a rare period of peace began.

On January 30, King Charles I of England was guillotined, ending the rule of the Stuart dynasty in England. England has since become a republic without a king and a House of Lords.

After Li Zicheng died in Changsha in August last year, the Shun army was in disarray. Within a few months, huge divisions appeared. Initially, Tian Jianxiu and Yuan Zongdi intended to surrender to the Qing Dynasty, while Li Guo, Gao Yigong and others Shang was still hesitant about this. Tong Yanghe, the governor of Huguang in the Qing army, was overjoyed and sent letters of appeasement six times. Each time the conditions he offered became more generous, his attitude became more sincere, and his feelings became stronger. As a result, Most of the Shun army gradually wanted to surrender.

However, Dorgon, who was in Beijing, repeatedly insisted on shaving his hair and moving all his family members to Hebei to prevent the surrender of the army. This move was flatly rejected by most of the generals of the Shun army, and the idea of ​​surrendering to the Qing Dynasty was abandoned.

Later, Li Guo and others advocated surrender to the Ming Dynasty, but they were flatly rejected by He Tengjiao, the governor of Huguang in the Yongchu court. Because the late Emperor Chongzhen died at the hands of Li Zicheng, the Yongchu Emperor deeply hated Chuangtong and had not hesitated to fight against the Qing army in the face of extreme measures. Under great pressure, the Ming army in Hunan was ordered to flank the Shun army, forming a joint attack with the Qing army. When Li Zicheng was attacking Changsha, he was hit by artillery at the city head and died in the formation. At this time, it was with all his strength that Li Zicheng It's a great opportunity to wipe out the bandits, so how can we allow them to surrender?

In January, the Shun army was helpless, so Li Guo, Gao Yigong, Yuan Zongdi and others led most of their troops to Guizhou and Yunnan, trying to join forces with Sun Kewang, Li Dingguo and other Western armies. Zhang Zhen, Liu Rukui, Ma Chongxi and others went north to Wuchang , shaved his hair, changed clothes, and surrendered to the Qing army.

On February 18, the Daqi Kingdom of Hanzhou declared war on the Dutch East India Company on the grounds of the Makassar Incident, starting the second Sino-Dutch War.

A group of heavily armed East India Company mercenaries escorted two carriages to the Batavia port terminal. Huang Mingfang, Qi's representative in Batavia, waited for the carriage to stop, got off the carriage, and then looked at the carriage with a smile. Yvel Jiménez, the East India Company's senior representative for external affairs, got off another carriage.

"It is a pity that you, Hanzhou, have chosen to enter a war with us." Yvel Jimenez looked at the young Hanzhou representative with a complex expression, "This is a huge disaster for both of us. "

"Facing the aggressive posture of your Dutch East India Company, we in Qi have no choice." Huang Mingfang said: "Because you have never truly respected our interests in Qi, nor have you faced up to our Qi's political and economic demands. What's more, Putting us among the savage and ignorant natives...it's time to change all this!"

"Huang, tell me. Are you, Hanzhou, preparing for this war in advance?"

"Our ancestors once said a very philosophical saying, no matter how big the country is, if it likes war, it will perish; no matter how safe the world is, if it forgets to fight, it will be in danger."

"……Um?"

"Our Qi State is united as one to deal with various external threats at any time." Huang Mingfang stared into the other party's eyes, "So, we are fully prepared for any upcoming war."

"I now somewhat agree with Mr. Upton's prediction of your Hanzhou." Yvel Jimenez said seriously: "You are just waiting for an opportunity to start a war with our East India Company. You want to completely

Defeat us, replace us, and gain dominance in this region."

After hearing this, Huang Mingfang looked at Yvel Jimenez and said word for word for a while: "After all, your East India Company is an outsider and needs to respect the new local order."

After saying that, Huang Mingfang walked towards an armed merchant ship that was about to set sail back to the Hanzhou mainland.

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February 20, Weiyuan Island, Weiyuan Port.

The main fleet of Qi, led by the battleships "Hanping" and "Hanhe", set sail one after another and sailed out of the harbor. Officials and people gathered on the shore stood at the pier, waving constantly to bid farewell to the fleet.

.

This special attack fleet gathered two battleships from Qi, 14 professional battleships, 11 armed merchant ships, and four flying fish boats. It carried four companies of the Marine Corps, more than 500 soldiers, and 1,000 native servants.

There are more than five hundred people, as well as more than a thousand doctors, construction craftsmen, and native handymen.

In addition, there are six armed merchant ships, a marine company, and more than 200 rural soldiers at Xuanwu Fort. They are on standby to support the task force attack fleet and launch raids on several strongholds of the Dutch East India Company in the Spice Islands.

On February 26, the task force arrived at Niu Island (today's Yendena Island, Indonesia) and stopped at Niu Fort (today's Watmulli town northeast of Yendena Island) for a day's rest.

After more than ten years of continuous capture, the wild buffalo herds in the forest near Niubu have almost disappeared. In addition to endless forests, the local area has no other resources, so it has not been supplemented by new immigrants for a long time. Today, the entire

The population of the stronghold is only a little over 200, and they live a hard life relying on thousands of acres of cultivated land and a few small fishing boats in the surrounding area.

Now that the special attack fleet has arrived, thousands of people have poured into the town, suddenly breaking the quiet and peaceful life here for many years. The vegetables and fruits grown behind the fields and houses, the snacks made by the residents, and the chickens, ducks and geese raised by the farmers and other non-staple food have almost been destroyed.

The officers and men of the fleet bought it all.

All this made the entire town residents smile. Counting the lovely silver coins, they wondered in their hearts if the fleet won a big victory this time, would they have to pass through this place and return to the homeland? So, in the next days, what should we do?

Don't mess around with the vegetables and fruits in the yard. Store more eggs in the house so that you can sell more to the navy officers and soldiers next time.

When the local residents learned that Qi had declared war with the Dutch, they couldn't help but sigh. Although the Dutch may not find this inconspicuous island and massacre them, the people of Qi, but the peaceful life of more than ten years may come to an end.

To break through, it is inevitable to do more preparation work.

On February 28, the fleet left Fort Cow and headed straight for the Spice Islands.

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March 2, Zhenhai, Timor Island (now Dili City, East Timor).

Four armed merchant ships owned by the Dutch East India Company had been sailing outside Zhenhai Port for half a day, but they never dared to attack the port.

The Dutch often travel here, so they probably have a certain understanding of the defense of Zhenhai Port. According to the characteristics of the Han people, they like to build their strongholds like turtle shells, with numerous docks and forts. Zhenhai City itself has also undergone several rounds of

It has been expanded and reinforced and can be called a strong fortress. Ten years ago, the Dutch mobilized more than 2,000 people and more than a dozen artillery, but they were unable to break it. Today, both the city defense and the armed forces stationed there may be even worse than before.

As for blockading and sieging this stronghold, it would have no effect. With the hard work of the Hanzhou people, tens of thousands of acres of farmland must have been reclaimed around Zhenhai City, and the natives in the inland areas have already been conquered by them.

, there is no need to worry about the shortage of supplies due to the blockade.

By mid-afternoon, four Dutch armed merchant ships left Zhenhai Port one after another, turning around and heading east.

"Sir, they may have gone to Baoning (today's Manatuto Town in East Timor) or Baoning." Gu Sanping looked at the Dutch armed merchant ships going away and said softly.

"It's also possible that they are walking around Timor Island, trying to catch our merchant ships or fishing boats." Hu Pingjiang put down the telescope, handed it to the soldier on duty on the watchtower, and turned around to get ready to go down.

"Then the Dutch may have to make the trip in vain." Gu Sanping said from behind: "Half a month ago, the General Administration issued an order requiring all transport ships to avoid rivers and ports to avoid being intercepted by the Dutch.

Take advantage of this. In addition, the forts and towns in various places are fully stocked, and there is no danger of a blockade or siege by the Dutch. In a short period of time, the Dutch may not be able to cause major damage to our administrative area of ​​Timor Island."

"The Dutch are still not courageous enough." Hu Pingjiang said as he walked: "At the beginning of the war, they should gather a powerful fleet and deploy thousands of landing troops to directly attack us in the east of Hanzhou. As long as they are willing to pay

With some casualties, several strongholds can be breached.

.In my opinion, the city defense construction in many areas in the east is far inferior to our towns in Timor Island. Moreover, I do not believe that the Dutch have not known the location of those strongholds in the east for so many years.

Damn it, they are still afraid of being blocked by our fleet!"

Hearing this, Gu Sanping didn't know how to answer the question for a moment.

"Perhaps, the Dutch are not sure that they can capture our stronghold towns in the eastern part of Hanzhou." Gu Sanping said slowly: "You need to know that the Dutch came to Southeast Asia just for profit. However, our Qi soldiers and civilians live and work in peace and contentment in Hanzhou.

If we are attacked by the Dutch, we will definitely have the thought of protecting our homeland and the country, and we will definitely be able to repel the Dutch attack by sharing the same hatred with the enemy."

"What you said is not bad." Hu Pingjiang nodded and said: "In terms of desperate efforts, the Dutch are definitely not as good as us. For our own land and our own families, we will definitely fight to the death... these days.

, Zhenhai City and surrounding areas

You are in charge of the political affairs of this fort. I will supervise the training of the rural soldiers and native servants, so that when we attack Ocusi and Gubang, we will not be able to take the stage! Huh, after this battle, we, the general manager, will

area, it can be expanded to the entire Timor Island.”

"There are not many Dutchmen stationed in Ocussi and Kupang. As long as you pay a certain price, it shouldn't be difficult to capture them." Gu Sanping said: "However, after occupying it, we may face a counterattack by the Dutch, and maybe there will be

Send a fleet to blockade and siege these two places."

"So, after we capture these two Dutch strongholds, we must transport the required supplies and food there as soon as possible. As long as we can withstand the first wave of Dutch counterattacks, we will almost be able to gain a firm foothold. In this way, it will be

The Dutch power was completely driven out of Timor."

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On March 8, eight warships flying the red and yellow dragon flag of Qi suddenly broke into Ambon Bay. A Dutch merchant ship that had just sailed out of Ambon port was quickly surrounded by Qi ships before it could turn around.

, and then under several rounds of shelling, they reluctantly waved the white flag and humiliatedly surrendered to the officers and soldiers of the Qi Navy.

The first battle was an immediate victory, and the morale of the officers and soldiers of the Qi Navy was greatly boosted. After sending a dozen officers and sailors to take over the surrendered Dutch merchant ship, they sailed straight towards the Ambon Pier.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!..." A Qi warship that took the lead in exploring the way was suddenly bombarded by more than ten artillery pieces on the sea more than 400 meters away from the dock, and one shell hit the front of the ship.

, another shell penetrated the sail of the ship, and three sailors were immediately hit by flying sawdust. Fortunately, their vital parts were not injured, and they were dragged to the bottom of the ship by their companions screaming in agony.

The several Qi warships that followed immediately stopped, then distanced themselves, preparing to turn their ships sideways and use broadside artillery to fight back.

Luo Rucheng held the telescope in both hands and frowned, watching the four warships in front of him and the pier fort firing at each other. In less than half an hour, except for the warship that was exploring the way at the beginning, the other three warships were hit.

Several artillery shells were fired at different parts of the ship. Several large holes were opened in the sides, stern, and balcony of the ship. There was even a ship whose mast was hit by a chain bullet and fell to the deck, which greatly affected its maneuverability.

sex.

"Send a signal to have them all withdraw." Luo Rucheng turned around and ordered.

The defense of Ambon port has been significantly strengthened compared to ten years ago. There are sixteen artillery pieces currently firing, but he believes that the number of the opponent's artillery must be more than these. The purpose of using warships to knock out the opponent's forts will definitely not be achieved.

If the Marines land in advance, walk through the jungle, launch an attack on Ambon City, and replicate the results of that year, it may not be effective again. You must know that Ambon City has been captured twice by the Qi army before, and even if the Dutch

No matter how stupid you are, you won't make the same mistake a third time.

Watching the four Hanzhou warships withdrawing from the harbor one after another, warm cheers erupted from the fort at Ambon Pier.

"Hey, you timid Hanzhou people, just rush forward if you have the guts!"

"Aren't the people of Hanzhou always very brave? Why did they just run away with their tail between their legs today?"

"They are just a group of cowards, a group of cowards... The Hanzhou people know how to carry out sneak attacks. Today I gave you a taste of artillery shells. You will probably go back crying to your mother. Haha..."

"..."

"The morale of the boys is very high, which is very good news for us." Ambon Governor Scotty Evans said with a smile: "The first round of Hanzhou attacks is about to attack our city of Ambon.

, must be trying to reproduce the results of the war ten years ago, and prepare to give our East India Company a showdown. Unfortunately, they made the wrong idea!"

"Sir Governor, I think that although the Hanzhou people were repelled by us, they will definitely not be willing to leave just now." Lieutenant Chris Klein, the commander of the fort, said cautiously: "They may intercept and attack outside the harbor.

Merchant ships coming to Ambon may also block us to cut off the connection between the Spice Islands and Batavia."

"Block us?" Governor Scotty Evans couldn't help laughing when he heard this: "So, how many warships does Hanzhou need to mobilize and assemble to do this? Don't they worry about our East India Company?

A decisive naval battle with them at Ambon?”

"...Maybe Hanzhou just wants to have a decisive battle at sea with us." Lieutenant Chris Klein thought for a while and said with some uncertainty.
Chapter completed!