Riau Islands, here is the entrance to the Strait of Malacca, and a few sea miles to the north is Singapore. The islands here are densely packed, the waterways are narrow and complicated, there are shoals under the water, numerous reefs, and shipwrecks accumulated over centuries. All ships
When driving here, you will slow down your speed. Especially in the dark night, you must be cautious.
You can't even see your fingers on the sea, and the forest around the island extends into the sea. This kind of water forest composed of mangroves is called "mangrove". The roots of these trees grow in the water, and the vines hang down, densely packed in the forest.
The nocturnal birds and insects made all kinds of strange noises. If it weren't for the seawater gushing between the tree trunks, the atmosphere would be as eerie as a stagnant pool in a swamp.
On the open sea in the distance, at the end of the sea level in the east, a light appeared. As time passed, the light became clearer and clearer, and it was possible to see clearly that it was a huge ship with bright lights.
There was the sound of motors in the mangroves of the island, and two wooden fishing boats of dozens of tons slowly drove out. The two small boats did not light a single light and were completely hidden in the darkness of the sea. One of the boats drove carefully.
When we arrived at the opposite side of the waterway, we chose a spot, turned off the motor, dropped the anchor claw, and parked there. Another boat stopped on this side of the waterway, also turned off the motor, and dropped the anchor. The two boats were separated by one another.
More than a hundred meters.
With the tide at night, the two fishing boats also heaved together. Although there were no lights on the boat, whispers in Malay could be heard from time to time, revealing excitement and expectation. Mixed in the voices were some gun bolts
Sound, the sound of bullets pressing into the chamber.
The giant ship in the distance is getting closer and closer. You can see that it is a large passenger ship. One-third of the upper portholes are still lit, and there are mercury lamps shining on the deck. The entire giant ship is brightly lit, as if it is floating on the sea.
Like a luxurious city on the sea.
After another ten minutes, the giant ship was already close at hand. "Yong'an Princess" was written in white paint on the bow of the ship. The tall ship's bow was like a black cliff, approaching quickly. There were white waves in front, and the sound of the heavy oil boiler
The thick roar was deafening.
At this moment, two small fishing boats on both sides of the waterway pulled up their anchors at the same time, as if they had agreed, and then a thick rope was raised between the two boats, crossing the water. The giant ship rushed over, and the bow of the ship was raised.
The ropes immediately dragged the small fishing boats at both ends backward, and the two small boats naturally came to both sides of the giant ship.
Then, without wasting a second, the two fishing boats threw up the anchor ropes at the same time, and then several people with machetes hanging on their waists and rifles on their shoulders climbed up skillfully.
…
On the deck of the Yong'an Princess, guard Chen Dongping was dozing off in his chair. It was around three o'clock in the middle of the night and he couldn't be most energetic. He patted his face vigorously, trying to wake himself up. He
I knew that I was now approaching the Strait of Malacca and had sailed into the waters infested by pirates. But from the second half of the night I was struggling between half asleep and half awake, and I couldn't help but say to myself, if I hold on a little longer, someone will take over at four o'clock.
But I still couldn't open my eyelids, my mind fell into confusion, and another voice in my heart said: Just be confused for a while, it's okay, there are six guards on the deck, and I am one of them...
There were footsteps approaching slowly on the left deck.
Although Chen Dongping was already dozing off, his ears still caught the sound of footsteps. A thought came to his mind: Pirates!
He calmly opened the revolver holster at his waist, held the handle of the gun with his right hand, then slowly opened his eyelids and glanced to the left.
Phew! It was a false alarm. It turned out to be the security director on the ship.
"Hey, wake up," the security minister shouted softly, "If you continue to take a nap, you won't even know that pirates have boarded the ship!"
Chen Dongping quickly sat down and said with a smile:
"Minister, actually I'm not asleep. I know even when you come here..."
The security minister obviously didn't believe what he said and scolded him with a straight face:
"The company doesn't pay you to sleep on duty! Either way, don't do it! Just do it if you want to!"
Chen Dongping's face was so hot that he lowered his head and did not dare to look at the minister's face.
Suddenly, there was wind in my ears, and a bright light flashed before my eyes. A human head rolled into my arms, and my eyes were wide open, as if I didn't react. That was the head of the security minister!
Chen Dongping's scalp exploded. He looked up and saw that the security minister in front of him had bare shoulders. Where there was a head, there was only half of his neck. Blood spurted upwards. He spun around half a circle and fell to the deck with a thud. His hands and feet were still twitching.
.
His vision went dark, and his stomach felt like he was about to vomit. A long machete was held around his neck. At the same time, a hard metal object was pressed against the back of his head. Then, a hand reached out to his waist.
, and drew away the pistol.
A hoarse voice in his ear lowered his voice and asked in stiff Chinese:
"Someone else? Someone else?"
Chen Dongping's whole body was cold and his mind went blank. He quietly looked up and saw several ferocious faces staring at him.
pirate……
Chen Dongping almost lost consciousness and pointed numbly at the positions of other guards. The hoarse voice asked again:
"Several people?"
Chen Dongping trembled and tried twice before he managed to make a sound:
"Six..."
One of them pouted his face to the left and right, and several pirates squatted down and touched in the direction indicated by Chen Dongping. One of the remaining two men put a knife on Chen Dongping's neck, and the other put a thick rope around Chen Dongping's neck.
There was a slipknot tied around his neck.
Then, the two men carried him to the railing and tied one end of the rope to the railing. Chen Dongping was almost numb. Only now did he realize what they were going to do. There was a begging look in his eyes, and he managed to make a weak sound from his throat:
"Please...please..."
Without saying a word, two shirtless, dark and lean men grabbed his hands and feet and threw him over the railing.
Chen Dongping hung out of the railing, swung his legs a few times, and then became motionless. His head was lowered, and his hands and feet were hanging weakly. With the inertia, they bumped against the side of the ship time and time again, like a bag.
Within a few minutes, all six guards on the deck were beheaded, and their naked bodies lay on the deck, spurting blood.
Then, on the fishing boats on both sides of the cruise ship, more pirates climbed up along the ropes, and dozens of them gathered on the deck for a while. Each of them held a long machete, and half of them had guns, some with pistols and some with rifles.
, and another person holding a rotary light machine gun in his arms.
Next, a leader quickly assigned tasks, and several groups of people went to occupy various key parts of the cruise ship. Then he personally led a group of people to occupy the command module.
These people opened the hatch and entered the interior of the ship. They were all familiar with the methods, as if they had designed the entire ship. Within ten minutes, the entire ship was under their control.
The fishing boats hanging on both sides of the cruise ship cut their ropes, separated from the cruise ship, and then sailed into their respective hiding places.
The Wing On Princess was controlled by dozens of pirates. Instead of sailing westward into the Singapore Strait, it turned off all the ship's lights, turned southwest, and sailed into the Riau Islands, a wild and complex waterway.
…
Kuimulang destroyer. In the dim red light of the command module, except for the noise of the power system, no one spoke, and everyone stared at the chart.
"Master Xiang, what should I do?"
The captain raised his head and looked at Xiang Xiaoqiang. Qiu Qiu and the two guards also looked at Xiang Xiaoqiang.
Xiang Xiaoqiang bit his nails irritably and said:
"You two, one is the destroyer captain and the other is the submarine captain, you still have to ask me about these things at sea! Do I know better than you?"
He walked quickly to the porthole and looked out through the round glass. It was pitch black outside, and under the faint starlight, he could vaguely see the overlapping black shadows of the islands in the distance.
"If the ship was really hijacked," Xiang Xiaoqiang bit his fingernails and guessed, "it would probably have been hidden among those densely packed islands."
The four people behind him looked at each other and nodded in agreement.
"No matter what," Qiu Qiu said, "let's send a telegram to the country first, telling them that we have lost contact with the Yong'an Princess in this area and suspect that it was hijacked by pirates. Listen to the opinions of the country."
The captain looked at Xiang Xiaoqiang. Xiang Xiaoqiang nodded. The captain immediately picked up the microphone, called the radio operator, told him the situation, and asked him to send a report to the country.
Xiang Xiaoqiang said:
"It's best to send a report to the commander of the Military Control Commission in Batavia to see what assistance can be given to us. We only have one destroyer, and there are so many islands in this area that it is almost impossible for us to find it. It is best to send a destroyer from Batavia after dawn
Via sent a plane over to search the sea area from the air."
Qiu Qiu looked at him and shook his head gently.
Xiang Xiaoqiang glared and said, "What's wrong? Isn't it possible?"
Qiu Qiu said with a sad face:
"Batavia is more than a thousand kilometers away from here, and carrier-based aircraft cannot reach it. Now the Osprey bomber with the longest range on Batavia Island has a range of only more than 1,200 kilometers."
The maximum range is 1,200 kilometers, and the flight radius is only 600 kilometers. It is impossible to fly here. Unless the aircraft carrier comes with it. However, until the matter is confirmed, this is tantamount to nonsense.
The captain looked at Qiu Qiu and Xiang Xiaoqiang and suddenly said:
"Sir, Madam, the only place with airplanes nearby is Singapore. The British have built a military port and fortress here and have a military airport. Let's see if we can negotiate with them in China and ask them to send planes to search."
Xiang Xiaoqiang nodded, this is also a way. But now the Ming Dynasty has just fought a war with the Netherlands, and they have blackmailed them ferociously. It can be said that it has seriously challenged the system of Western colonies in Southeast Asia. The British must be very unhappy. Directly ask the Singapore British
If the colonial authorities ask for help, the Governor of Singapore will definitely not dare to send a plane directly, and will definitely ask London for instructions. After all, it is too sensitive now. That will probably have to wait for consultation with the United Kingdom at home. It is better to go through diplomatic channels and delay it for another day or two.
It would be faster to send the aircraft carrier directly from Batavia.
Also, the Ming Dynasty has its Songkhla base in southern Siam, which also has an airport. Songkhla is six or seven hundred kilometers away from here, and it takes a thousand, two or three thousand miles to go back and forth. Plus, searching in circles here, I don’t know where the land is.
Do basic aircraft have such a long range?
Now that the telegram has been sent back to China, we have to wait for the country to respond and make arrangements.
Xiang Xiaoqiang suddenly asked the captain:
"By the way, wake up all the sailors on the ship and ask if any of these hundreds of sailors are familiar with the Malacca pirates... Damn it, if we can find one of the pirate lairs, even just one, it will be easy to handle.