Traveling through the late Ming Dynasty to promote Chinese civilization

Chapter 231 Battle of Liaoluo Bay (1)

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The following morning, a large fleet comprised of Zheng Zhilong's forces, the Fujian Navy, and the Qiongzhou Battalion sailed out of Zhongzuosuo Port, heading straight for Liaoluo Bay on Kinmen Island. The massive fleet consisted of 13 Wuxiang-class patrol ships from the Qiongzhou Battalion, over 30 warships of varying sizes from the Fujian Navy, and the remaining 150-plus ships belonged to Zheng Zhilong—including over 40 large Qingtou ships and about ten three-masted warships. Zheng Zhilong made no attempt to conceal his presence; once near Kinmen, any attempt to hide would inevitably be discovered, so he preferred to launch a swift and unexpected attack.

A fleet of this size had barely appeared on the horizon in the waters off Kinmen when it was spotted by Dutch lookouts. Upon seeing a dense mass of sails on the horizon, the lookouts shouted at the top of their lungs, "Enemy attack! Enemy attack! A large fleet is rapidly approaching, its intentions are unknown!"

Putmans had just gotten up and was enjoying his breakfast when he heard the sailors' warning. He cursed and quickly put down his breakfast, running to the bow to look around. When he saw the massive fleet rapidly approaching Liaoluo Bay, he gasped in shock.

"God, this must be Zheng Yiguan's fleet. Did he bring all the ships from Fujian here?"

Captain Van Bommel of the flagship Middleburg, on which he was stationed, asked, "Sir, should we take the initiative to engage or defend?"

Putmans composed himself. Although Zheng Yiguan's arrival was somewhat sudden, this decisive battle was inevitable; it didn't matter whether it happened sooner or later, so there was nothing to fear. He said, "Their ships outnumber ours by more than three times, but most are small junks. Charging in and engaging them in a chaotic battle won't showcase our advantages. Send someone to order Liu Xiang to spread out and protect our outer perimeter. All our ships should concentrate together and use our naval cannons against Zheng Yiguan, trying to avoid a melee."

"As you command, sir!"

Upon receiving Putmans's order, Liu Xiang overturned the table and roared at the Dutch soldier who boarded the ship to relay the message: "This is making me cannon fodder! I only have 50 ships, while Zheng Zhilong has one or two hundred. How am I supposed to defend myself?"

The Dutch soldier replied expressionlessly, "I'm only responsible for relaying the officer's orders. As for how to defend against enemy attacks, that's your business."

After the messenger left, Liu Xiang's men surrounded him and said, "Big Boss, Red Hair doesn't treat us brothers like human beings. Should we just retreat?"

"Yes, judging by this, Zheng Zhilong is going all out. We can't become cannon fodder for the red-haired devils. As long as we're alive, we can always fight another day..."

Liu Xiang's face was grim. After a long silence, she sighed and said, "I understand what you're saying. But getting on this pirate ship is easy, getting off is hard. Let's not even talk about whether we can retreat in time. Even if we can escape, if Hong Mao collapses, we'll be left to fend for ourselves and will be killed by Zheng Zhilong sooner or later. Now we only have one path left: to go all in and bet on Hong Mao. It's better for Hong Mao to win than for Zheng Zhilong to win."

"What does the big dragon head mean?"

Liu Xiang slammed her hand on the table and said fiercely, "There's no turning back, we have to do it."