Three merchant ships lined up in a line, but they did not dare to enjoy this rare beauty.
"Have the weapons been distributed?"
On the ship leading the way, Guan Zhao, deputy director of the Batavia Division of the Ministry of Intelligence, did not dare to relax at all, and his whole body tensed up like a cheetah preparing to prey.
"They're all distributed."
His subordinates' answers still didn't reassure him.
"Pull out the cannons and load them with shells."
"Isn't it a little early? If I don't meet anyone..."
When none of his subordinates finished speaking, Guan Zhao waved his hand to stop him.
"Since the day before yesterday, unidentified ships have appeared around us from time to time. They must be pirates coming for reconnaissance. If nothing else, they will definitely come in the next day or two."
In this case, the subordinates had nothing to say and hurriedly conveyed orders to each ship.
For a time, all three ships were busy nervously.
For this purpose, all three merchant ships have undergone certain modifications.
Especially the artillery secretly arranged on the ship. At this time, they were all pushed out and loaded with shells.
"There are ships! Northeast! Seven ships!"
On the high mast, the lookout shouted shrilly.
The atmosphere on the ship immediately became solemn.
"Order everyone to go to their positions and prepare to fight."
Guan Zhao quickly rushed to the bow of the ship, picked up his telescope and looked northeast.
It's a pity that his position is slightly lower, so he can't see much yet.
At this moment, the lookout reported a new situation.
"There are also ships coming from the rear left, eight of them."
Seven in the front and eight in the back, that’s fifteen ships.
By this time, no one still doubted that these ships appeared here by chance.
Time passed little by little, and Guan Zhao could only force himself to calm down.
While recalling the entire battle plan, he stared at the sea conditions around him.
Fortunately, there was no other news coming from the watchtower, which made him feel more at ease.
Finally, the seven ships ahead appeared in sight.
Experienced sailors can recognize them at a glance. These are all Fu Chuan and Haicang boats.
There is only one such boat on the sea near here.
"It is indeed the Zheng family."
Guan Zhao gritted his teeth and made an angry sound.
I saw seven warships lined up in front of me, and some even came from both sides.
Obviously, the purpose of these people was not to allow any possibility of escape here.
Guan Zhao kept estimating the distance.
He issued the order only when the seven warships came two thousand meters ahead of his own side.
"Turn around immediately and go south."
The three merchant ships had been waiting for a long time. As soon as they received the order, they immediately turned around and headed south in a hurry.
All this was arranged in advance.
There is only one purpose, and that is to prevent pirates from seeing any flaws.
If they run away too early, these pirates will definitely suspect that they have been prepared. If they don't pursue them anymore, all their efforts will be wasted.
If you run too late, you are likely to be trapped in a tight siege, unable to wait for reinforcements, and the entire army will be wiped out.
A distance of about two thousand meters is in a relatively delicate state during general sea navigation.
At this distance, both parties can see each other with the naked eye.
In many cases, you can even determine what the other party's purpose is.
Anyone who sees that the other party is outnumbered and outflanking them will not think that the other party is a friend.
In this case, it is reasonable to run away in a hurry.
Sure enough, seeing the three merchant ships here trying to escape, the pirate ships began to speed up.
Three ships chased after them, and the other four also turned their heads to the south, always lying across the east side here.
Obviously the purpose is also very clear.
No matter what, Guan Zhao and others were not given the chance to escape to the east.
"Eight ships from the southwest are also catching up."
The watchtower kept relaying the situation.
The eight pirate ships blocking the rear were closer because of this turn. Even without a telescope, standing on the deck could see the ferocity of the opponent's approaching approach.
In order to make the performance realistic, these three merchant ships were all loaded with cargo as normal. Although there were fewer cargoes than before, it was obvious that the speed could not be compared with those empty pirate ships.
Therefore, the distance between the two parties is getting closer and closer, which is consistent with common sense.
"Where have we been?"
"According to the agreement, we are still twenty miles away from the Dutch."
The people under his command knew what he was asking, and kept using instruments to test the position while making reports.
In order to avoid being discovered by pirates, the distance between merchant ships and the Dutch fleet was very far.
The agreement between the two parties was that once they were attacked by pirates, the three merchant ships would turn south and pretend to break out of the encirclement.
The Dutch warships will be ambushed to the south.
In other words, the mission of the three merchant ships is to lead the pirates to the ambush location.
The key to this is that you must not be bitten by pirates on the way to escape.
On the calm sea, the two sides chased and fled, getting closer and closer.
In a short period of time, both parties ran several miles away.
Seeing that the pirates were very determined to escape, the pirates gradually became impatient.
Suddenly there was a loud rumbling sound on the sea, and then a tall water column rose from the water near the merchant ship.
"The enemy is firing!"
Guan Zhao looked coldly at the steaming pirate ship and blurted out a sarcastic laugh.
"Are you so angry that you don't want to cover it up?"
Many merchant ships were robbed and killed here before. Although no one escaped, a conclusion has been reached after investigation.
Those pirates used cold weapons during their robbery and killing.
But now, the opponent actually used artillery.
How can someone who can own artillery be a ragtag group of pirates?
Obviously the other party felt that this was a sure-fire situation and was not worried about their three ships escaping.
"Report, the Dutch are at the front."
Exciting news finally came from the watchtower.
Guan Zhao quickly woke up and conveyed the order.
"Let the Dutch outflank us from both sides and tell the ships to slow down and prepare to fight."
The lookouts immediately waved their flags and informed them of the deployment here.
On the Dutch warship, the commander received the signal well through the telescope and made arrangements immediately.
The powerful Galen warship quickly divided into two parts, one east and one west, preparing to be the oriole.
Guan Zhao gave orders to all ships not to turn around and continue southward, but to turn to the west.
In this way, it is equivalent to making a bend in the sea and pointing the side of the ship towards the pirates pursuing from the west.
As for the seven ships to the east, their distance was slightly increased for a while.
And this is the opportunity.
The eight pirate ships in the west couldn't help but be overjoyed when they saw the flaws in the three merchant ships. They quickly pursued them and bombarded them with the cannons on their bows.
But at a distance of several hundred meters, the accuracy of these artillery pieces was unsatisfactory.
Although the waves caused by the shells falling into the water shook the three merchant ships, there was not much danger for the moment.
As he watched the pirate ship enter within two hundred meters, everyone on the ship could vaguely see their faces clearly, and Guan Zhao showed a cruel smile.