Dongjiang Island is not far from the mouth of the Yalu River. Although the fleet led by Lin Qingye was not as fast as those of the navy in Jinhai Town, at about Xu o'clock that night, the entire fleet still arrived at the trumpet-shaped estuary of the Yalu River.

innermost.

The so-called fort built by the Manchu Tatars on Mao'er Mountain to block the river and control the sea is on the west bank of the river mouth in this area.

But in the night mist, it was so dark in the distance that Yang Zhen and the others could not see anything clearly except the night navigation lights of the ships in front.

In Liaodong in mid-to-late September, the sky is already dark before Xu hour. When around Xu hour, if there is no moonlight, it will be so dark that you can't even see your fingers.

Of course, such a dark environment at night has both disadvantages and advantages for Yang Zhen.

Yang Zhen and the others stood on the boat and looked west. Although they couldn't see where the Maoershan Fort was in the night, and the boat couldn't get up fast at night, at the same time, they could still see clearly the Mantazi Watching Post on the Maoershan Fort.

How many ships do Yang Zhen and his fleet have?

"Captain, it's already past Xu time. According to common sense, there is a curfew at night in the important Jiangkou area. The Manta Tartars stationed at the fort here may not let them go at night. If they wait until daytime tomorrow, they may cause trouble.

"In this situation, it is better to send an order immediately to General Yuan, Vice Admiral Yu and others, and ask them to lead the main force of the fleet to follow us quickly, meet us here, and then attack together into the Yalu River and under the Zhenjiang Fort!"

Ever since the fleet left Dongjiang Island and sailed westward, Yang Zhen no longer continued to hide in the hold and pretend to be a rower.

Although he was still dressed as a bilge oarsman, he had already gracefully boarded the main cabin of Lin Qingye's boat to give orders, and he had undoubtedly become the commander-in-chief of the entire fleet.

Just now, news came from the scout ship ahead, saying that the Qing envoy Man Tazi, who was staying in the fleet, ordered the fleet to lower its sails and slow down, waiting for orders from the commander of the garrison flag battalion of Maoershan Fort.

Yang Zhen naturally had to listen to such an order, so he instructed Lin Qingye to order the entire fleet to comply.

When the fleet slowly anchored on the water south of the narrowest point of the river mouth, Zhang Chen came to Yang Zhen and made such a suggestion to him.

That means that if we can't see the Manchu Tatars clearly, the Manchu Tatars must also be unable to see us clearly. It's better to call on the large fleet of Yuan Jin and Yu Liangtai who are following far behind to take advantage of the situation and surge in.

"General Lin, what do you think of Vice General Zhang's proposal?"

Yang Zhen stood in Lin Qingye's main cabin, holding on to the porthole, looking at the night-dark water outside the porthole, and asked Lin Qingye without looking back.

"Well, it's better to wait and see. Since Qinglu Jingjin Beilenikan has said something before, he will ask the fleet to arrive outside Zhenjiang Fort tonight. Presumably the garrison flag camp at Mao'ershan Fort at Jiangkou will also receive the order.

"In this case, we don't need to alert others here. After all, this place is not far from the Zhenjiang Fort in the north, only about twenty miles in front and back. Once we break in and are discovered, it will be difficult to capture Zhenjiang Fort.

Already."

Lin Qingye pondered for a while, then told Yang Zhen his thoughts and concerns.

"As for Vice Admiral Zhang's proposal, in Lin's opinion, it can be used as a backup plan. Once the Maoershan garrison flag camp asks me to wait here and wait here, and the fleet will not be allowed to pass tonight, then the commander can calmly contact Yuan

It’s not too late for the commander-in-chief and the others to come here to meet up at night and then decide when to launch a strong attack.”

"Um."

After Yang Zhen heard Lin Qingye's opinion, he hummed first, then turned around, nodded at Lin Qingye, and then asked him:

"I know that you, General Lin, once led troops stationed on the east bank of the Yalu River in this area, and you must be very familiar with the situation here. So in your opinion, if we forcefully break into the river mouth and attack Zhenjiang Fort, what are the chances of victory or defeat?"

"this--"

When Lin Qingye heard Yang Zhen ask him this question, his words seemed to indicate that he wanted to change his original plan. He hesitated for a moment, thought for a while, and said:

"This place is connected to the river and the sea. Whenever the Caspian Sea rises at night, seawater will pour in from the Yalu River estuary. The water in the river mouth and the Caspian Sea is huge. If we join forces with General Yuan, Deputy General Yu and others to take advantage of the situation from the sea, there is indeed a possibility of success.

"However, from here to the north to the foot of Zhenjiang Fort, there are many forts on the twenty-mile river bank. They will fight all the way across in the darkness. The result is unpredictable. Once the war is delayed until dawn, it will be dangerous!"

When talking about "danger", Lin Qingye deliberately emphasized his tone.

Although he did not want to openly oppose the proposal of Yang Zhen's confidant Zhang Chen, he could not help but express his deep worries.

"That's right. It's easiest to fight quickly when the enemy is clear and we are hidden. Once the fight becomes a protracted situation, then our fleet will be anchored on the Yalu River, but it will put itself in an extremely dangerous place!"

When the sea level at the Yalu River estuary rises, the water from the estuary to the vicinity of Zhenjiang Fort is huge, which is very conducive to the passage of sea-going ships. However, in the early morning, when the tide ebbs at the estuary, the water level in the Zhenjiang Fort area will drop significantly.

At that time, if the fleet cannot be used to seize Zhenjiang Fort at night, then when the tide goes down in the morning, a large number of ships will be crowded on the river, or even stranded on the river beach.

If that time really comes, it will mean that Tiantian should not call the earth and the earth will not work, let alone continue to capture Zhenjiang Fort. By then, whether they can escape unscathed will become a question.

After Yang Zhen asked Lin Qingye's opinion, he heard what he meant. He thought about it and made up his mind.

"General Lin knows the situation at the Yalu River Estuary better than we do, and his concerns are justified. From now on, we will continue to implement the original plan without making any changes."

"As for Yuan Jin and Yu Liangtai, they are the back-up and back-up of our strange army. They cannot easily fall into the same situation as us. Only when we start the battle under Zhenjiang Fort can they launch here."

Yang Zhen thought about it and expressed his decision.

"The governor is wise!"

Seeing that Yang Zhen had made up his mind, Lin Qingye immediately clasped his fists and bowed to agree with Yang Zhen's decision.

"As for Zhang Chen's suggestion just now, it reminds me. We can send a boat back to the sea now to find Yuan Jin, Yu Liangtai and the others, and ask them to control the lights and slowly approach the river mouth while the night is dark.

"At the same time, tell them to be careful and pay attention to the movements on the river. Either tonight, or tomorrow morning at the latest, we will definitely start the battle to capture Zhenjiang Fort.

"Once there is the sound of cannon fire near Zhenjiang Fort, tell them to immediately divide into two groups, advance by land and water, and seize the river bank fort here at Mao'er Mountain at all costs.

"I understand the humble position!"

Yang Zhen's final order was issued. Lin Qingye and Zhang Chen bowed and clasped their fists to accept the order, then turned and left, arranging the ships and messengers to return.

About half an hour later, Yang Zhen sent out to contact Yuan Jin at sea. Not long after the ship of Yu Liangtai and others left, the scout ship in front of Lin Qingye's fleet sent another order from the Jiang'an fort.

It was said that the commander of the flag battalion garrisoning the fort on the river bank of Maoershan asked them to leave a few scout ships for their use, and other ships could continue to travel north along the river.

Yang Zhen, Lin Qingye and others were so happy to report that they immediately arranged for a few insignificant navy scout ships, replaced them with trustworthy sailors, and followed the person who sent the order.

Then the horn sounded to give the order to raise the sails and set sail, and the fleet began to slowly move northward along the river.

After passing the narrowest point of the river mouth, all the ships, large and small, used their oars and sails together and took advantage of the rising water to sail northward quickly toward Zhenjiang Fort, which was twenty miles away.

At the same time, the five turtle ships carrying heavy Hongyi cannons hidden in the large fleet also completed the final assembly of the Hongyi cannons, and were firmly fixed in the bottom cabin of the turtle ship near the bow.

On the gun position.

The musketeers of a battalion of the Eastern Marching Army Musketeers, who were brought to Lin Qingye's fleet by Yang Zhen, were also gathered together with guns and ammunition at the ready, ready to launch an attack when the ship arrived at Zhenjiang Fort.

At this time, the unique concealment advantage of turtle ships is revealed.

Not to mention it was dark at this moment, even during the day, with the fully shielded structure of the turtle ship, people on the shore would not be able to see what was going on inside the ship unless they boarded the ship for inspection.

The night was dark, the river wind was cold, and the flags and sail ropes on the ship were rustling in the wind. Standing by the porthole of the fleet flagship, Yang Zhen could even hear the sound of the river water lapping against the river bank.

Around midnight on September 18th, the thirteenth year of Chongzhen, the scout ship in front of the fleet finally sent back the news again, saying that it had seen the lights on Zhenjiang Gate of Zhenjiang Fort.

Less than half an hour later, the scout ship in front sent back news again, saying that the generals of the Mantazi Banner Camp outside Zhenjiang Gate had designated a place for the fleet to dock on the river bank outside Zhenjiang Gate.
Chapter completed!