The Taiwan Strait in September is not very friendly.
The violent storm is like the demon king of hell coming to the world, roaring and trying to tear apart everything that dares to resist.
Huge waves rolled on the sea, up to three to four meters high. Photographed from the air, they could bury anything.
But the people on the ship had no time to feel this fear.
They are fighting.
Fight this damn weather!
Fight the enemies in front of you!
"Stay steady, don't panic, lower the sail, and keep an eye on the Dutchman in front."
Zuo Hua tied himself to the fence pole and kept giving orders at the same time.
He was already soaked from head to toe, but he didn't care. All he could see was the two Dutch warships fleeing in panic directly in front of him.
Since the last victory in intercepting the Wenluo, Zheng Zhilong has tasted the sweetness and sent small teams to cruise around the Taiwan Strait from time to time.
As soon as a lone Dutch warship is discovered, they will swarm it, creating a situation where there are too many and there are too few.
However, the performance of the Dutch warships was excellent, and several encirclement and suppression campaigns failed to achieve any results.
But it also interrupted the Dutch's attempt to trade with Japan.
Time passed in this kind of hide-and-seek, and the situation became increasingly tense.
In mid-September, the censor Lu Zhenfei rushed to Fujian and brought Chongzhen's imperial edict.
Chongzhen was very angry about what the Dutch had done and ordered that the Dutch must be severely punished.
After Zou Weilian, the governor of Fujian, received the decree, he immediately sent a letter to civil and military officials in various places, not to talk about "peace talks" in the future, and vowed to fight to the death as a barbarian.
With the imperial edict from the imperial court, the Chinese side completely gave up the plan of negotiating peace and began to actively prepare for war.
Under such circumstances, finding the main force of the Dutch became the first condition.
Hong Xu was dispatched for investigation mission.
Zuo Hua followed Hong Xu and wandered on the sea for a long time.
Just yesterday evening, they discovered two Dutch warships.
Hong Xu immediately ordered to bite.
Regardless of whether they capture these two Dutch warships or let them run away to join the main force, traces of the Dutch fleet can be found.
Everything was fine at first, but then the weather at sea changed drastically.
The storm comes suddenly, with devastating power, and can overturn the ship at any time.
In this situation, there is no other way but to seek happiness.
Zuo Hua didn't expect Hong Xu to come to rescue him. He didn't know whether Hong Xu would survive.
He could only lead his staff to stabilize the warship while pursuing the Dutch.
A large ship of hundreds of tons is like a leaf in the vast ocean, being abandoned high at one moment and falling heavily at the next.
The people on the boat were beaten to pieces and many were injured.
If his body had not been tied to various pillars with ropes long ago, he might have been thrown into the sea without any trace of his body.
But one benefit brought about by the storm is that both the Chinese Fu Ship and the Dutch Galen Ship could only lower their sails obediently.
As a result, neither of the two parties can run fast. Even where they can run can only be decided by God.
As for other artillery fire and boarding battles, don't even think about it.
It was pitch black all around, and the visibility was very limited. The only thing Zuo Hua could do was to keep praying, hoping that the two Dutch warships would not escape his sight.
I don't know how long the storm lasted.
Just when everyone was feeling desperate, the sentry's heart-rending shouts suddenly came from the watchtower.
"We've hit the rocks, the Dutch have hit the rocks, get out of the way!"
In the wind and rain, Zuo Hua could barely hear clearly.
He picked up his binoculars and looked forward, vaguely seeing two Dutch warships already motionless.
No matter how big the storm is, it cannot affect it.
In such violent weather, the Dutch warship was able to remain motionless, so there was only one situation.
They ran aground on the rocks.
Zuo Hua didn't have time to think too much. He cut the rope with a knife, moved the fence he was holding on to and rushed to the helmsman.
He knocked away the helmsman, took over the warship himself, and crushed the rudder to death.
I saw the warship under my feet turning around and sliding to one side, a little away from the Dutch warship in front.
Until the afternoon, a ray of light suddenly fell from the east.
The storm finally passed slowly.
"It's sunny!"
"I'm still alive!"
The people on the boat, no matter how polite they usually were, all became very irritable at this time.
After going through this ordeal and being able to survive, no matter how arrogant it is.
Zuo Hua slumped down next to the rudder, and the control of the ship had been handed back to the helmsman.
He wiped the water stains from his face and laughed.
"Let's go and catch the Dutch."
After the storm, they were still swimming on the sea, but the two Dutch ships could not move.
Seeing the battleship approaching, the Dutch on board were completely desperate.
They jumped off the boat in a panic and stepped into the shallow water, trying to find a way to escape.
It's a pity that the shells that keep falling are frantically harvesting their lives.
Hundreds of people were killed before the rest of the Dutch gave up hope.
A white flag was raised, representing that the Dutch chose reality.
It was only then that Hong Xu caught up.
He looked at Zuo Hua in disbelief.
"You guys are so lucky."
Zuo Hua laughed wildly.
"I am the Dragon King. It is not easy to kill me on this sea."
Hong Xu's expression changed slightly and he took a deep look at Zuo Hua.
Not caring about anything at this time, he quickly sent people up and captured all the Dutch.
The two unlucky Dutch battleships were Katewijk and Bucaspel.
Among them, the captain of the Bucas Bell, Van Baartwe, died in the storm.
Therefore, the captain of the Katvik, Rostlev, is the highest officer of this small Dutch fleet.
When he was brought up, he looked frightened and trembling.
Hong Xu is honest and polite.
"Tell me, where is your Dutch fleet?"
Rostreev stood in a daze and said nothing, as if he did not understand.
Hong Xu didn't say anything, but suddenly chopped it off with a knife.
Rostreev's left arm was completely cut off, and he was bleeding profusely.
"In Tongshan! They are in Tongshan! Don't kill me!!"
Rostreev fell to the ground, wailing wildly.
"Bah, you bastard, you won't be able to fight unless you fight."
Hong Xu was very proud and satisfied with his interrogation methods.
Zuo Hua curled his lips, having nothing to say about the cruelty of these pirates.
He waved, and the military doctor ran up and began to treat Rostreev and bandage him.
In any case, this trip was not in vain, and we finally learned about the traces of the Dutch fleet.
On the vast sea, whoever can discover the other party first will have the upper hand, which will turn into victory.
The Dutch are about to face the first wave of attacks from Zheng Zhilong.
Zuo Hua and Hong Xu returned and reported the information they obtained to Zheng Zhilong.
Zheng Zhilong was overjoyed. After giving credit to the two men, he immediately led all the warships out of the harbor and headed straight for Tongshan.
