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After nightfall, the wind began to grow stronger, and with the influence of the tide, the vast ocean was filled with surging waves, and the sound of the waves was like the roar of a wild beast.
There was a cold moon hanging in the sky, and the moonlight sprinkled on the rolling waves, making them look pale.
Vernado's military uniform was wrinkled, and it was obvious that he had not changed it for many days. He stood on the deck, looking at the surging sea, his heart pounding.
He had waited too long, and if it hadn't been for the help of the Mughal Empire, he didn't know if he could have survived until now.
According to the intelligence obtained by Ke Chenshu, he only had about twenty warships and more than thirty armed merchant ships, but in fact, this was not correct.
After losing its Far East colonies such as Java and Sumatra, the Netherlands lost its once most profitable spice trade, and also lost trade in the Far East with Qin and Japan.
Although the Netherlands also has colonies in America, it has shifted its focus to the Far East in recent years. The Dutch East India Company is the most profitable company in the country, and trade in the Far East accounts for about 50% of the Netherlands' total maritime trade revenue.
The Netherlands is unwilling to accept the loss of its colonies in the Far East, not to mention that the Qin Navy is making further advances and is now advancing into the Indian Ocean. If even the interests in India are lost, the Netherlands, the coachman at sea, may very likely decline and lose its throne as Europe's number one maritime trading power.
Therefore, the Netherlands sent Baron Acidene with 27 well-equipped warships to provide support. He just arrived three days ago. This is one of the reasons why Vernado decided to lure Ke Chenshu to a decisive battle.
Vernad called this place the Lassa Islands. There are only three small islands less than one square kilometer above water, but there are hundreds of reefs hidden beneath the water.
If it is during the day, you can clearly see these coral reefs through the clear sea, because they are red, as long as you get closer, you will be shocked by the magnificent colors of the green water and red reefs.
But on a night like this, these shallow reefs are the most feared graveyards for passing ships.
The Mughal Navy commander Pramor came out of the cabin and saw Vernado standing on the deck in silence, just staring at the dark sea in the distance. He couldn't help but ask, "General Vernado, are you not sure that you can lure the Qin fleet here?"
"I'm not worried about this at all." Vernado seemed very confident. This was necessary, even if he was not sure at all.
The reason why the Dutch and the Mughals were able to come together this time was entirely because they were both threatened by the Qin Dynasty.
Plummer brought more than two hundred warships, but only twelve were equipped with artillery, and they were all old-style Arab ships that were slower than the enemy.
Although the other small and medium-sized warships were not slow, their weapons were simple, using swords, guns, bows and arrows. And this was not the key point, because these weapons, plus the small size, shallow water and high speed of the ships, could play a greater role in these reef-filled waters.
The key is the fighting spirit of the Mughal soldiers, which makes Vernado very disdainful. He has been in India for several years and is very familiar with the fighting spirit of the Mughal navy;
Vernado was very worried that when the decisive battle came, under the fierce artillery attack of the Qin army, the small and medium-sized warships of the Mughal Navy would not dare to rush forward.
What is hard to bear is that they still think they are very powerful. They are very arrogant and even naively believe that the Qin fleet will be vulnerable in front of them.
Vernado found it extremely ridiculous to think about their bizarre idea of loading elephants onto ships for battle.
But now they have lost almost all their bases in India, and have to rely on others for logistical supplies. They can only endure it. Of course, if they are defeated in the end, it would not be bad to drag the Mughals to be their scapegoats.
Plumer said arrogantly: "If General Vernado is so confident, why doesn't he dare to take the initiative to attack? I think we should be prepared for both situations. If the Qin army does not come, we will take the initiative to attack and quickly defeat the Qin fleet. You can see that our morale is high now. If we keep hiding and dragging it out, our morale will be gone in a few days."
"General Plummer, please prepare for war as planned. I estimate that the Qin fleet will arrive soon." Vernado was unwilling to waste any more time talking to him.
This time, Plamor did not say anything. If the attempt to lure the enemy was successful, the Qin fleet would indeed be arriving soon, so he took a small boat and hurried back to his command ship.
Vernado looked at the sea in the southeast again. The moonlight was rolling with the waves near the sea, but it was pitch black in the distance and nothing could be seen. The sound of waves was constantly hitting the hull beside the ship.
Vernado returned to the command cabin. Baron Akidni, who had just arrived in India with 27 elite warships, was holding a lantern and reading a sea chart on the table. Hearing his footsteps, he said without raising his head, "General Vernado, don't you think it might be a huge mistake to join forces with these stupid people like the Mughals?"
Vernado took off his hat and hung it on the hat hook beside the cabin, saying casually: "If that's the case, it must be the stupidest decision."
Baron Akidni stood up in surprise, the light shining on his wavy blond hair, and his questioning eyes fell on Vernado: "General, what are your plans?"
“United but not united.”
Just these four words immediately made Akideni feel a lot more at ease. The Mughal navy was very arrogant and would naturally not obey their commands. So as long as they did not force themselves to unite with them, they would not have to worry too much about being dragged down by them.
"I support General Vernado's decision."
Vernado and Akidni were talking quietly in the cabin. They were not talking about how to fight, because there were plans for this. What they were discussing was how to let the Mughal Navy take the blame in case the war was lost.
At this moment, to the west of the Rassa Islands were a total of 83 Dutch ships, and to the east were more than two or three large and small warships of the Mughal Empire. After nightfall, both sides implemented a blackout.
Looking from close up, there were shadows everywhere, as if countless giant beasts were lurking in the night, ready to attack and hurt people at any time.
But as long as you are a little far away, you can only see darkness and nothing unusual.
Thirty miles southeast of Lasha Island, the sea was surging, the waves were roaring, and under the dim moonlight, tongues of fire were seen gushing out, boom! boom boom boom... ... ... .
The Qin army's several dozen arrow ships kept zigzagging, and once the angle of the naval guns was right, they immediately opened fire in succession, bombarding the two Dutch warships that were desperately fleeing in front. One after another, the shells streaked across the night sky, whistling away, stirring up columns of water on the sea, flashing white light, and roaring with the waves.
The two Dutch warships were not to be outdone. They fled while fighting back. The two sides chased and fought fiercely in the dark sea. However, due to the strong monsoon and surging waves, the two sides were two or three miles apart. Although solid bullets could reach the target, the hit rate was extremely low. After the shells flew out, it all depended on luck.
A few miles later on the sea, Ke Chenshu hesitated again. The two Dutch warships in front were most likely responsible for luring the enemy. If they went further, they would most likely encounter an enemy ambush.
Ren Zhong, the deputy commander of the army, also advised again: "General Ke, order the fleet to stop. It's dark at night, and it's very dangerous to chase after them."
"I know, but if we give up like this, I don't know when we'll find the enemy next time."
Vernado is as slippery as a loach, and if the conditions are not in his favor, it is certain that he will never fight you.
It is impossible to defend everywhere in this vast ocean, and it can only be defended temporarily, not forever. Once Vernado passes through the east coast of India, it will be a huge disaster for the merchant ships of Daqin.
Ren Zhong suggested: "General Ke, how about this? Let the six clippers in front continue to chase the enemy. Once they find the enemy fleet, they don't have to engage in a fight. Just follow the enemy fleet and send a warship back to report."
This is not a good idea. In fact, it is equivalent to watching six clippers rush into danger alone. Even if it is safe as Ren Zhong said and the enemy is entangled, the enemy will definitely not stand still and wait for you to attack.
When one of your ships comes back to report the news, it is hard to say where the enemy fleet will escape to. It is useless for the remaining five warships to follow them because you cannot send the news back. Even if you follow them for a year, the main force behind you may not be able to find you.
It's a difficult situation...
****************** (My novel "Ming Yang Tian Xia" will have more fresh content on the official WeChat platform, and there will also be a 100% lucky draw gift for everyone! Open WeChat now, click the "+" sign "Add Friends" in the upper right corner, search for the public account "qdread" and follow it, hurry up!) (To be continued..)
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