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- . Chapter 217 The Rain in Bieloli
After the main battle fleet set off earlier, Zhu Ming also set sail with the Fu Ship. The Fu Ship had a large displacement and was better able to withstand wind and waves at sea. Although its combat effectiveness was weak, it was hard to think of anyone who would offend such a behemoth. fleet. *
The news of this expedition was kept strictly concealed at first, but later it became known to everyone. When the main battle fleet left the port in the early stage, no one knew the news, so it went quietly. This time the troop transport fleet and cargo ships set off, it was in A small storm was triggered in Funamura Harbor.
Knowing that the king of the country would personally lead the fleet to conquer the next opponent, the merchants and workers of Funamura Port rushed to the port dock, preparing to watch the hero's expedition.
Theirs is that the Blackwater Kingdom has been fighting non-stop since its establishment, but the wars took place abroad. Although there were familiar people around them who continued to lose their lives due to the wars, their increasingly better lives have allowed them to Understand that more living space is obtained with flesh and blood.
Today, there are warriors who are about to go on an expedition for the benefit of everyone. Due to emotions and reasons, they all feel it is necessary to go on the journey.
Zhu Ming is still a little worried about the situation in the country. Although it is quiet inside now, many Tu people have already begun to have their thoughts ready. Although Ming's control over the Black Water Ming Kingdom is weakening day by day, there are still some people who are still interested in it. Ming Dynasty, these are unstable possibilities.
In addition, the Ping Kingdom in the north is not monolithic. If something happens here, it will be too hasty to take care of it.
Therefore, Zhu Ming divided the military mobilization power into three parts. Any military mobilization army that dispatches more than 500 people requires these three seals to be mobilized.
These three seals were handed over to two of them, which is equal to one and a half for each person. One was given to Zhao Qing, who was also the highest military officer left behind, and the last one was given to the civil servants. Any major issue of sending troops required the king. Copper and Lumi decided together.
Although this also caused delays in the matter and might delay the military situation, it was better to cause delays than to cause major problems. Therefore, no one spoke out about Zhu Ming's decision.
Now that Zhu Ming is still here, even if some people have thoughts in their hearts, they don¡¯t dare to put it on the table too nakedly. If they take a little precaution, they probably won¡¯t be able to cause much trouble.
And this time Zhu Ming took away 3,000 elite soldiers alone, including sailors. Although they could not match the size of Zheng He's fleet, they could definitely run rampant on this ocean.
After leaving the port, the fleet headed west through the Strait of Malacca. The battle fleet that had left the port earlier also resupplied on Sumatra Island and waited for the subsequent fleet.
Fourteen warships, fifteen transport ships of various colors, as well as a large number of ships sent by free trade associations to carry various grains, fresh water and other supplies, as well as those merchant fleets that followed the expedition fleet far behind, this fleet Judging from the momentum of the huge fleet, it already has the style of Zheng He's fleet back then.
Those merchant ships that followed Zhu Ming's expedition fleet far behind were the most courageous merchants, and they were ready to follow the fleet to Ceylon to pick up bargains.
"These merchants are generally down-and-out people. Those big merchants who really have a fortune will not take such risks and send people to die. They usually send some grain ships to support some grain and grass.
Those adventurous merchants were different. Although their ships also contained food and grass, they also contained people, as well as a small number of swords and guns. Armor was not available and was expensive. Moreover, even in the Blackwater Ming Kingdom, even though it was relatively free, Hiding armor privately is still a taboo thing.
Those merchants had a good idea. They wanted to see if they could take advantage of the chaos to make some robberies. Even if they couldn't rob, they still had a little spare money on hand, so they could buy some trophies from the soldiers or even the leader Zhu Ming at a low price and transport them back. Going to the Ming Dynasty in Heishui is also a huge amount of income. Wealth and wealth can be gained through danger, and that's nothing more than this.
The fleet braved the wind and waves all the way. During this long journey that lasted for more than a month, Zhu Ming also roughly set the goal of this operation.
The purpose of this battle is to occupy Ceylon, a good natural port base, so it is natural to choose a ready-made prosperous port to start. Now there are two options: Belori and Colombo.
Beloli is under the control of the Sinhalese Kingdom and is located at the northwest end of Ceylon. It is currently the largest port in Ceylon. Seventy to eighty percent of the supplies of merchant ships from various places and the trade of special products on the island of Ceylon are completed here. .
??And Colombo is located at the southwest end of Ceylon. At this time, it is far from the prosperity of later generations. Under the rule of the Tamils, it was only an auxiliary to Beloli. Only when the wind was favorable, the merchants would go directly to Colombo for supplies.
These two ports have one thing in common: they are both located to the west of the Port of Ceylon.
?This reason is also easy to explain. Ceylon faces the Indian Peninsula. Although it serves as a link and a crossroads for distant ocean trade, in fact it is the Indian Peninsula that has the closest connection with Ceylon.
The west side of Ceylon Island faces the Indian Peninsula, so the most prosperous and densely populated areas are all in the west side of Ceylon Island.
Zhu Ming¡¯s choice this time was to find a breakthrough from the west of Ceylon.
Although Zhu Ming's expedition fleet came from the east, it stands to reason that landing directly on the east coast of Ceylon Island can quickly find a land support, but the east is really underdeveloped. Zhu Ming's principle for this attack is to land on Ceylon Island as soon as possible. Lan established his prestige and used force to gain control of the island of Ceylon in one fell swoop.
If they land in the east, they will have to fight a daily tug-of-war with the Sinhala Kingdom and the Tamil Kingdom. Zhu Ming cannot afford it, so he might as well use the advantage of the sea to break into the most prosperous areas of his opponent.
So after some deliberation, the final point of attack was decided, which was Beloli Port. With a thunderous force, the Sinhala Kingdom was defeated in one fell swoop.
During these days at sea, there was no lack of good wine. In addition to wiping the deck every day, the sailors kept pushing open the gun doors and simulating the action of loading the guns, or the sailors who operated the sails boredly followed the wind direction and made frequent adjustments. direction of the sail to get a little extra acceleration.
The soldiers of the Blue Ling Guard were not so lucky. This was not on land, and they could not conduct array training.
Fortunately, although these soldiers of the Blue Ling Guard are not sailors, they can withstand wind and waves. During this journey, they are assigned to perform some simple drills on the small deck under the leadership of the team officer every day, so that their bodies will not become stiff.
It is now April and May, and the northeast monsoon is blowing in the Indian Ocean, allowing the fleet to rely on the wind to reach the vicinity of Ceylon Island.
Many people have been to Ceylon before. The fleet is now due east of Ceylon. Zhu Ming gave an order and with fourteen warships as the leader, the fleet turned to the northwest, preparing to circle to the island of Ceylon. To the west, attack the prosperous areas of Ceylon.
We encountered some merchant ships along the way. There was no obstruction at sea, and the field of view was not clear when the weather was clear. Those merchant ships were single or in groups of three or five. How had I ever seen such a huge fleet in the Indian Ocean? Zhu Ming This fleet, plus the merchant ships following behind, has exceeded fifty ships of various types. The first thought of anyone who sees the rise of such a fleet is to take a detour.
So no one bothered us along the way until we entered the strait between Ceylon Island and the Indian Peninsula.
At this moment, this strait does not have a clear name, but the merchants of the Blackwater Ming Dynasty like to call it the Broken Bridge Strait, because the Ceylon Island and the Indian Peninsula each have a land that stretches into the sea like a tentacle, but it was eventually called the Strait of Broken Bridge. It is blocked by sea water, so it is called the Broken Bridge Strait.
In the Broken Bridge Strait, Zhu Ming's huge fleet really encountered a guy who was using his arms as a chariot.
The two ships opposite should be huge behemoths in this area. They are nearly ten feet long and have sharp heads raised. They are different from the shipbuilding methods of the Black Water Ming Kingdom and the Tianfang people. Only A mainmast stands tall, and there is a high protective wall on the bow.
At this moment, the two shooting windows on the parapet were opened, and Zhu Ming vaguely saw through the telescope in his hand that behind the shooting windows was a giant crossbow.
Looking at the purpose of those two ships blocking the strait, it is obvious that they are to block the expedition fleet of the Black Water Ming Kingdom.
Zhu Ming originally came to Ceylon to fight. How could he not show off his power at this time when he blocked the road without giving face?
Send the order, there is no need to communicate, just fire. If the people blocking the Broken Bridge Strait are not from the Sinhalese Kingdom or the Tamil Kingdom, they must be from the Vijayanagar Kingdom. These three families are all Doesn't look like a possible ally.
The front sea shark ship Yongzhou is a battleship equipped with artillery on its bow. Among the nine sea shark ships, only the three in front are equipped with bow cannons. The others have been canceled by Zhu Ming.
In a close naval battle, this ship's bow gun is really of little use.
But at this time, the ship's bow gun took the lead in firing, and with a roar, the two ships that followed also fired. The three cannons were all aimed at the front one of the two enemy ships, although none of them fired. It hit, but the spray of water immediately panicked the people on the opposite boat.
"Quickly, raise the royal flag of Vijayanagara, who dares to attack us like this?" At this moment, a leader who looked like a man on the first enemy ship shouted angrily.
A light blue flag was raised, but the battleships of the Black Water Ming Kingdom did not notice this at all.The second round of shelling came as expected. This time as the distance got closer, a shell hit the hull of the enemy ship. At this time, the shell, which was considered huge in terms of the caliber of the artillery, rushed into the enemy ship. The hull of the ship shot out a piece of wood chips.
The panicked enemy ship quickly fired its crossbow. The crossbow arrow, which was as thick as an arm, looked extremely terrifying. In normal times, it would definitely be a great weapon. But at this moment, the warship of the Black Water Ming Kingdom was still a hundred feet away. The crossbow arrow soon lost its power and fell into the sea.
"Run quickly, go quickly." The two enemy ships wisely chose to retreat, but their steering was not flexible. They were chased by the Blackwater Mingguo warship with its sails fully torn. Now they were closer, and their cannons could be lowered. At this time, there was no distinction between cannon and howitzer. The gunners just lowered the muzzle according to the distance of the enemy ship
At this time, the first enemy ship was on the side of the Yongzhou. This time, there were no surprises. Ten guns were fired in unison, and the entire hull shook to the other side. The hit rate at close range was quite similar. High, eight shells happily penetrated the hull of the enemy ship, and two shells penetrated and emerged from the other side.
The people on this enemy ship were crying for their fathers and mothers.
The other ship saw the opportunity quickly and ran away as fast as it could fly. But when the other ship saw that if it continued to struggle, its subsequent end would only be worse. The sailors lowered the sails as fast as their butts were set on fire. Many people stood there. There was a loud shout from the side of the ship, and everyone understood what it meant.
The expedition fleet stopped the bombardment and sent small boats to board the enemy ships.
After spending a lot of time interrogating the prisoners, it was determined that the enemy ship came from Vijayanagar on the other side, and the current situation on the other side was not good. Several sultanates in the north were pressing hard, but the sailors The news is just hearsay, and the general information can only provide so much.
When asked why the other party blocked the strait here, the other party's answer was very simple. There was no conspiracy theory included in it. Normally, the Broken Bridge Strait is the narrowest point between Ceylon and the Indian Peninsula. There is a "powerful" fleet stationed here. On weekdays, they just collect merchant ship taxes and fees, and all boats come out. Today, seeing Zhu Ming's huge fleet, it is impossible to use any real skills, so they sent the most powerful fleet. Two battleships.
Who, the most powerful warship, couldn't even get through a face-to-face encounter, and was directly beaten to a black face.
What happened was just a joke. The expedition fleet continued down the strait and passed through the Broken Bridge Strait. Belori was right in front of them.
The news did not spread as fast as the expedition fleet, so when the expedition fleet passed through the early morning twilight and appeared outside the port of Belori in the gray weather, everyone in the port did not dare to open their eyes wide.
This was like a powerful fleet falling from the sky. Many people even knelt down and thanked the miracle.
It wasn¡¯t until the expedition fleet fired a few cannons in demonstration that the booming cannons made everyone understand that the fleet on the opposite side was not a fleet of divine messengers bringing love and peace, but a conqueror from nowhere.
There was chaos in the port of Belori, and the garrisoned ships hurried out of the harbor to meet the enemy. Although the enemy showed sharp firearms, the Sinhala warriors were not cowards.
At this moment, the hazy weather finally started to rain lightly. The Sinhala sailors who were trying hard to paddle out of the port all shouted excitedly, "God help me, it's raining too. Firearms can't be used. Let them see the power of the warriors."
It's raining, and it's really hard to use firearms. However, the artillery on the Blackwater Ming Dynasty's warships are all below the deck, unlike most warships at this time. There can only be a few cannons placed on the deck. Something terrible.
The artillery of the expedition fleet was not affected. The enemy on the opposite side was delighted with the continuous roar of artillery. Although Belori Port was prosperous, the port area was not large. Fourteen warships of the Black Water Ming Dynasty were lined up. The port was blocked tightly, and under the indiscriminate attack of artillery, in the drizzle, several ships that had just been rushing to get out of the port sank, several caught fire, and several ships panicked and tried to turn back.
This is the time for the soldiers to practice their skills. Although the soldiers of the Blue Ling Guard are in extremely poor condition after a long and bumpy journey, engaging in a small warm-up battle at this moment will help them regain their spirits.
" Gunpowder is less for one shot in Ceylon. You have to save it if you can."
After two rounds of shelling, there were no ships in the port that dared to block the ship flying the black-bottomed sun and moon flag. Several large and heavy ships emerged from behind the row of light warships. No one could I didn't have the courage to step forward to intercept them, so I just watched the other party's ship approaching the port and approaching the dock.
A leading large ship easily knocked over a small boat on the pier, and then the big shipThere was also a heartbreaking creaking sound from the bottom of the boat, and the boat ran aground.
"Bastard" Li Liang, the commander on the ship, scolded the navy for being so unreliable. He also said that Belori Port could dock a ship of this size, but it ran aground before it could dock.
The sailors also looked depressed. There used to be a large fortune ship that docked at Belori Port for trade. It was completely normal. Whether it was due to changes in hydrology today or too much loading, it actually rubbed against the bottom of the ship. But it doesn't seem to be a big problem. , but the ships behind them no longer dare to go in.
With a depressed look on his face, Li Liang summoned nearly three hundred Blue Ling Guard soldiers on the ship, took off their armor, and jumped into the sea along the cable. It was only thirty feet away from the dock, and Fu Shui could do it. arrive.
The reacting Sinhalese soldiers on the shore began to wave their weapons and gathered at the port to face the Blackwater Ming soldiers who were about to swim towards them.
Zhu Ming saw all this from a distance, and felt depressed and angry in his heart. It was so ridiculous. If the opponent's defense had been tighter, wouldn't today's Lan Lingwei be ruined here?
At this moment, Li Liang led the vanguard to come into contact with the enemy soldiers. The initial damage was very serious. Many Blue Ling Guard soldiers had not yet climbed ashore. They had no protection and were exhausted. They were guarded in two blows. Sinhalese soldiers on the shore cut into the water, staining the sea red.
The troop carriers parked behind the harbor abandoned their rafts and wooden boats one after another, and the Blue Ling Guard soldiers crowded into the boats and rowed towards the shore.
When Li Liang led hundreds of people to occupy a small area on the shore, that place became the most eye-catching target. Both the Sinhalese and the soldiers of the Blackwater Ming Dynasty were moving towards that place. With.
Each raft at the back brought reinforcements ranging from twenty to thirty people to the shore. The number of Sinhalese soldiers on the opposite side was also increasing, and some civilians also joined the resistance team.
On this rainy day, the thunderbolt was originally a very effective weapon to break the opponent's formation and deal with civilians. Unfortunately, when it rained and when we landed from the sea, no one brought it, not even the musket. At this moment, he could only use the sword and gun in his hand to drive the enemy into the sea and change his position.
Chapter 217 The Rain in Bieloli
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