Senaras, the ruler of the Sinhalese Kingdom of Kandy on the island of Ceylon, formed an alliance with the Dutch East India Company. They defeated the Portuguese under the walls of Colombo Fortress. The Portuguese fortress commander was killed. By the time Zheng Zhilong and others arrived at the Liaodong Peninsula, they
When Yin Feng reported his work, the content of the final agreement signed between the Dutch and Kandy had been sent to Yin Feng's desk by the Ministry of Military Intelligence. The agreement stipulated that the Dutch were the only Europeans allowed to engage in trade on the island of Ceylon. As
In return. They agreed to provide maritime assistance when the Sinhalese attacked the Portuguese coastal forts.
At the same time, intelligence provided by the Ministry of Military Intelligence pointed out that the Portuguese strongholds of Batticaloa and Trincomalee on the Island of Ceylon had fallen. Negombo and Galle, the last two Portuguese strongholds on the Island of Ceylon, had also been occupied by the Dutch.
The joint forces of the East India Company and the Kingdom of Kandy surrounded the country. The results of the Portuguese "conquest of Ceylon" that lasted more than a hundred years were being wiped out. The Dutch had gradually replaced the Portuguese's position on the island of Ceylon.
Zheng Zhilong looked at this information in Yin Feng's study. He shook his head angrily and said: "This time, the Dutch Red Hair got an advantage. I will not give up. One day, I will land on Ceylon Island and drive the Red Hair away.
go out."
Yin Feng looked at the young Zheng Zhilong and persuaded with a smile: "Okay, you have many opportunities to avenge your shame. Besides, this time you make the decision to leave Colombo. It is really a wise move. It is not a shame."
Zheng Zhilong was still dissatisfied. He blushed and remained silent.
In fact, except for a small setback in Ceylon, the third fleet to Europe returned with a full load. It not only brought back a wealth of five million taels of silver, but also brought back hundreds of European skilled craftsmen, scholars, and missionaries.
Seizing the Cape of Good Hope was the icing on the cake. Zheng Zhilong and others received heavy rewards. Li Jin officially served as the diplomatic manager of the Jinghai Palace and the company's overseas affairs manager.
Yin Feng handed Zheng Zhilong two red-lettered official documents from the Chinese Army. He said slowly: "First officer, you have made outstanding contributions during this trip to Europe. Your actions to occupy the Cape of Good Hope were decisive and powerful. You were able to discern the opportunity and take timely action on Ceylon. These are all
It all shows that you can stand alone. As a reward, in addition to the gold and silver stipulated in military regulations, there are two letters of appointment and two positions. You can choose one. Soldiers have a bounden duty to execute orders. This is the Chinese Army
The first rule of the military academy. But I specifically allow you. You can choose your own orders this time."
Zheng Zhilong received two letters of appointment with excitement and confusion: one appointed Zheng Zhilong as the commander of the first regiment of Yan Siqi's fifth division stationed in North Korea. The other appointed him as the general manager of the Malacca Fortress. The main force under his command was the Chinese army in Malacca.
Malacca Independent Infantry Regiment.
Zheng Zhilong seemed a little hesitant. He was at a loss with the two letters of appointment.
"The Malacca Fortress garrison will form another local force. The actual goal of the general manager position is to point to the west of the Malacca Strait. I originally wanted to give you the position of deputy commander of the Nanyang Fleet Marine Corps. But you are still too young and your qualifications are still young..."
When Zheng Zhilong heard the sentence "The target is pointed west of the Strait of Malacca", he had already made up his mind.
He picked up a letter of appointment, stood at attention and saluted: "I have made up my mind. I will go south to Malacca to take office soon."
Yin Feng nodded happily: "Yes. It's just as I expected. The Chinese fleet has not yet entered the west of Malacca. The Dutch's gain in the Indian Ocean is temporary. When we get out of the Liaodong war situation, I, the Chinese fleet, will
Officially join the fight for the Indian Ocean. You must train your army seriously in Nanyang. Then I will be waiting for you to sail across the Indian Ocean."
Zheng Zhilong knocked his feet and saluted again: "Please rest assured, Your Majesty. I, Zheng Zhilong, will definitely live up to your expectations."
…
The next day, Yan Siqi complained loudly in Yin Feng's study: "Ship owner, this is not possible. This Zheng Zhilong is the candidate I have decided on long ago. I am waiting for him to lead the first group. No, you have to
Give him back to me."
Yin Feng never showed any dignity in front of his proud disciple Yan Siqi. At this moment, he was sitting on the mahogany Taishi chair and resting his feet on the desk easily. He looked at Yan Siqi with a smile. If he was like this, he would be beaten by Zeng Qi, Zeng Shan, Xu Hongji and others.
When he sees it, he will definitely be heartbroken and persuade him to maintain his image as a superior.
Yan Siqi saw that Yin Feng just smiled and did not respond. He became anxious and said, "My king, the ship owner. Our unit spends the winter in the mountainous area in northern North Korea where birds do not lay eggs. We have lost a lot of our troops due to injuries and illnesses. There are also many front-line officers who are sick. You can't
Let me take the troops short of major generals to fight against the Jurchen Tatars."
Yin Feng smiled: "Zheng Yiguan is a talented person. Nanyang is his world. There are many veterans of the former escort under you. If you shout about the shortage of major generals all day long, then the newly formed Sixth Division
Huang Luoke has become a beggar."
Yan Siqi put on a pitiful look and said: "Well, just because I lost more than ten kilograms due to fatigue during the winter in Korea, give me Major Liucheng of the Second Division. How about you give me the Cavalry Brigade?"
The commander of the second regiment was assigned to serve in my direct cavalry regiment. When attacking the Jurchen Tatars’ home base, my fifth division was the main force. You must give me a few capable generals."
Seeing Yan Siqi's scoundrel appearance, Yin Feng threw a document to him and cursed with a smile: "You are the one who calls me tired in front of me. You are the only one in the entire Chinese army. Let me be the commander of your first regiment."
Liu Anhai, the deputy commander of the regiment directly under the old battalion, will take over. Are there any vacancies for the rest of the personnel? Here is this list for you. Go to the Jinzhou Guard Recruitment Camp tomorrow to see for yourself. Most of the trainee officers and non-commissioned officers who graduated from the military academy this time
You and the new recruits are all there. You select carefully. You will be given three days. After selecting the recruits, go to the Planning Department and the Military Affairs Department of the old battalion operations department to apply for approval and registration. After one month, or at most two months, your troops will be ready for battle.
.”
Yan Siqi had no choice but to put away his playful expression. He stood at attention and saluted. Liu Anhai is from Quanzhou. He was one of the first batch of Fujian peasant children recruited in the early days of the establishment of the escort. He joined the escort with Yin Feng and was also the first battle of the Chinese army. Penghu Island vs. Red
Mao Yi's first battle can be regarded as a representative of the veterans of the Chinese Army. He and Yan Siqi are also fellow villagers. Yan Siqi has nothing to say about this candidate.
…
The defense line of Jinzhouwei Fortress has now become a huge training ground. A large number of newly recruited Chinese army recruits are training in this area.
In the entire southern part of the Liaodong Peninsula, nearly 400,000 Liaodong refugees gathered last year. Thanks to Yin Feng's precautions, he had already stored a large amount of food from Taiwan and Jiangnan to the Jinzhouwei and Lushun areas. He also prepared a large amount of cold-proof materials. In this way
This prevented a large number of refugees from starvation and freezing to death during the winter.
Nowadays, from Haizhou, Gaizhou, south of Phoenix Fort in Jiulian City to the mouth of Bohai Sea, it is all the territory of the Chinese Army. A large number of Liaodong refugees have gathered in this area, many of whom are strong laborers. Yin Feng brought weapons from Taiwan
Some equipment and technical craftsmen from factories and ironworks. Workers were recruited locally and began to produce arms and various products. Mines and ironwork workshops run by the company also began to operate. The Ministry of Agriculture began large-scale trial planting of sweet potatoes, corn, etc. in southern Liaoning.
Cold-resistant and high-yielding crops. The rice that Xu Guangqi successfully planted in Tianjin was planted on a large scale in southern Liaoning. The original Ming Dynasty government agencies in southern Liaoning have long since collectively collapsed and disappeared. Now it is the Chinese Army's Liaonan Military Administrative Region. It is divided into golden
There are two districts, Zhouzhou and Fuzhou. They are directly managed by the Zhoumu sent by the Jinghai Palace. In southern Liaoning, the Chinese Company has been completely excluded from the administrative authority. It has no tax collection power, administrative jurisdiction, or land division power.
It only enjoys monopoly trading rights and priority rights in mines and farms.
Along the newly paved cement road in Lushun and Fuzhou, you can see newly opened farms dotted along the road. There is an endless stream of carriages, donkey carts, and mule carts coming and going on the road. Yan Siqi and his guards rode north. They had to give way to those carts again and again. The people in Liaodong I saw along the way, although their clothes were still in tatters, were already rosy-cheeked and full of energy. They were no longer the refugees who were precarious and on the run the year before. There were still temporary shacks outside many villages. Shao Liaodong refugees live there. Most of them are the old, weak, sick and disabled, women and children, who are unable to work. A porridge shop opened in the name of King Jinghai and a charity house opened in the name of Princess Li Lihua provide relief to refugees in these places. There are many vehicles on the road. Just hang the flag of the charity house.
Colonel Huang Lue, commander of the Sixth Division, saw Yan Siqi entering the Jinzhou Guard new barracks. He greeted him with a loud shout: "Brother Zhenquan, you must be up to no good. You are probably here to rob people with me." "
"Where is it? I'm here to select new recruits. For those fresh graduates, I'd better take it to you, brother."
Huang Lue is more than ten years older than Yan Siqi. However, their military qualifications are similar. They participated in the counterattack on Manila together, so they have always regarded each other as brothers.
After the two saluted each other, they walked hand in hand into the playground.
The large playground is a square piece of flat land with a radius of nearly one mile. There are currently more than 1,000 recruits who are divided into two teams for formation exercises.
Zhang Pan, a former Ming army soldier who participated in the Battle of Sanlipu, is now marching in one of the groups holding a flintlock musket.
The training in the Chinese army is completely different from that of the Ming army. Long-term physical training is required every day. Various seemingly monotonous and repetitive queue training also consumes a lot of human energy and energy. Fortunately, Zhang Pan comes from a wealthy family and has good physical health. Okay. In the Ming army, he was easily trained with one exercise every five days and one exercise every ten days. In the Chinese army, he was trained continuously every day. He could endure it even if he gritted his teeth.
Zhang Pan's eyes were opened here; the Chinese army's training, operations, etc. were all very different from those of the Ming army. However, the instructors often quoted the words of famous senior generals such as Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou to teach them. Zhang Pan's tutoring was excellent and he was knowledgeable and knowledgeable. He is well-written and well-educated. He is almost the only scholar in the Chinese military. Most of the instructors at the Chinese Military Academy are veterans of the former escort. There are also foreign mercenaries. They usually have strict requirements on Zhang Pan. When he gets off the playground, he will Zhang Pan please go give literacy lessons to those new recruits.
Zhang Pan didn't understand at first why ordinary soldiers had to be literate. Later, during the training process, he discovered that even ordinary soldiers in the Chinese army had to understand various flags and signals. At the same time, all military regulations and disciplines were It is posted publicly in the military camp. Soldiers who cannot read it are likely to be unlucky. If there are soldiers who pursue advancement, they must be literate: combat diaries, training diaries, tactical discussions, and various reports must be written by the officers themselves.
The biggest shock to Zhang Pan in the Chinese Army was that the Chinese Army completely adopted firearms for combat. All formations and tactical training were conducted around firearms. However, the spirit of daring to see the red with a bayonet was also emphasized.
When instructors conduct tactical training for junior officers like Zhang Pan, they emphasize the number of guns, queue discipline and shooter training. The concept of cold weapons is basically completely abandoned.
At that time, the martial arts training in the Ming army was influenced by some fancy martial arts that were "merely beautiful" in the society. Therefore, many soldiers and court ministers in the Ming Dynasty conducted team training that should be practical skills that could be "really fightable". For example
Qi Jiguang resolutely rejected those things that "circle left and right, full of flowers and plants", and believed that "circling around, vertically and horizontally, this wandering teacher fights alone, and it can be used to decorate the eyes of the viewer."
The Chinese army also has bayonet hand-to-hand combat training. However, it has completely abandoned the fancy martial arts that were characterized by "body skills and posture" in the Ming Dynasty official army at that time. The instructor said to Zhang Pan: "All skills in the official army are based on body posture and posture."
First of all, this is just a show off. It has no actual effect in actual combat... Qi Jiguang said that a confrontation with a powerful enemy is different from the usual individual competition. When thousands of people are swarming away, it is not possible at all.
Maybe dancing with a spear, turning around and dancing..."
Therefore, the spear assassination technique that Zhang Pan originally learned in the Ming army was basically useless in the bayonet assassination technique of the Chinese army: the bayonet assassination technique of the Chinese army was trained repeatedly with only a few moves: thrusting, left and right thrusts, etc.
This is what Qi Jiguang said: "Teach soldiers to use only six shots: seal, close, capture, take, upper block, and lower block... This is enough."
The officers of the Chinese Army also practiced swordsmanship. They also learned Qi Jiguang's "Xinyou Swordsmanship", which is the Japanese Japanese swordsmanship learned from the Japanese pirates during the Jiajing period. The moves are simple and fierce.
Zhang Pan seemed to have entered a new world. He was eager to learn various combat skills. In the blink of an eye, three months had passed in his career in the recruit camp. He was promoted to a trainee sentry commander in the recruit camp and was recommended by the instructor.
Go to the Chinese Military Academy on the island of Taiwan to study.
At this time, he happened to meet Yan Siqi, Huang Lue and others who came to select additional troops.
At this moment, Zhang Pan's new sentry unit was conducting confrontation training exercises with a group of Chinese cavalry.
He arranged his sentry team into a small hollow phalanx. Each side of the phalanx was guarded by a team of people. Everyone stood in three rows with their bayonets raised. The front row squatted, and the back two rows stood. They faced it tenaciously.
Standing still like a rock, they were attacked and harassed by hundreds of cavalry around them. They kept firing blank rifles at the cavalry. The cavalry also shot at them with lances in the smoke.
The infantry's training against the cavalry made a lot of noise. It attracted Yan Siqi, Huang Lue and others.