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Chapter 1015 Finding a needle in a haystack
The search extended from Table Bay to the Cape of Good Hope, but neither the Spanish fleet nor Yan Bushi's squadron was found in the 70-kilometer sea area along the way. Only a few pieces of wood that looked like ship plans were fished out of the sea.

Now the problem arises. The fleet is at a crossroads on the sea. Except for the north, the other three directions are west, south and east. How to decide?
Hong Tao did not act arbitrarily like the famous emperors in ancient times. Instead, he called the captain and staff to the flagship and asked them to use their collective wisdom to analyze the correct search direction.

"Commander Yan is a relatively stable person and is unlikely to change the course on his own. I think we should continue searching southward."

As the commander-in-chief of the Indian Ocean Fleet, the highest military rank besides the emperor, Jie Ji was the first to voice his opinion. He was more optimistic about Yan Bushi's character and discipline, and believed that since the emperor had instructed in advance to lure the enemy south, he would not disobey.

"The situation on the battlefield changes rapidly. Commander Yan only has four warships and one armed merchant ship. Facing an enemy several times his size, I'm afraid it will be difficult to control the situation."

However, the Indian Ocean Fleet's Chief of Staff, Wang Tiemao, disagreed with the analysis of the top leader. The emperor's suggestion was only a suggestion, not an order, and the commander did not have to obey it during combat. Even if it was an order, if the conditions did not allow it, the commander could make changes according to the situation at the time.

"Hey, what's there to argue about? Just divide the fleet into three and search in three directions. Whoever joins Commander Yan will have nearly ten warships, which is more than enough to deal with the Spaniards."

Hearing that his two superiors disagreed, Settle had another idea. He did not favor either of them, but came up with a third idea: to divide the troops.

"I think Setel's method is the most reliable, but the troops should not be divided into three routes. Two routes are enough. The Spanish are unlikely to go east. First, they have to cross the Cape of Storms, which makes it easy to lose their target. Second, they know that they will not get any good results if they go to Port Enbird. Why repeat the same mistake again?

Even if they really went to the east, we don't need to rush to help, so we only need to search the south and west. Sister Ji, you lead six ships to the south, Setel, you also have six ships, follow me to the west.

Regardless of whether you can find Yan Bushi's squadron, Sister Ji, you must not exceed 45 degrees, and immediately return to Table Bay to cooperate with the ground forces. I will also return to Table Bay when I reach the prime meridian in the west. Okay, everyone return to the ship to prepare, and regroup and set off in half an hour!"

Three people, three opinions. Who should I listen to? Hong Tao didn't listen to anyone. He just wanted to gather everyone's wisdom and see if his subordinates had a better idea. Since none of them were comprehensive, he decided to make his own decision.

"Your Majesty, why choose to go west? Wouldn't it be more likely to go south?" After the officers on the deck had dispersed, Setel began to ponder again. No matter how he calculated, he felt that the emperor had chosen the direction with the least probability.

"What is the name of the commander of the Spanish fleet?" Hong Tao was estimating the sailing distance and approximate route on the nautical chart with the navigator. After hearing this question, he asked back without even raising his head.

"What's his name... Count?" Settle was really stumped by the question. He never paid attention to the enemy general's name because he had never heard of it, so it would be useless to know his name.

"Count Juan Supero!" Governor Cohen, who was allowed to stay on the rear deck, suddenly spoke and gave Settle a friendly smile.

Although the other party was only the captain of the Indian Ocean Fleet, and Batavia was in the waters under the jurisdiction of the South China Sea Fleet, the Ming Empire Navy had a tradition of regular rotation of guards, and it was possible that he would be transferred to the South China Sea Fleet one day, so it was better to make some friends in advance. "Yes, Count Supero!" Settle nodded gratefully to the Dutchman and answered the emperor's question loudly.

"What about his background?" Hong Tao still didn't look up. He picked up a ruler and measured the search width of the fleet. Feeling it was not appropriate, he widened it by about half and continued asking questions.

"Origin... Spanish Navy... What? New World... Your Majesty, I don't know his origin, and I can't remember his name!"

I didn't even remember his name, let alone his origin. Settle looked at Cohen for help again, but this question was more complicated and could not be explained in just one or two words. After listening to it twice, Settle got annoyed and knew that he couldn't hide it from the emperor, so he just admitted it openly.

"See, this is your shortcoming. You always focus too much on one thing and tend to ignore other things. No matter what you want to do in the future, you must try to make up for your shortcomings.

I remember that during the pre-war meeting outside Enniao Port, Governor Coen said that Count Supero was a very famous commander in the Spanish Navy. He had commanded the fleet in the colonies for a long time and should have thwarted many robberies against Spanish silver ships and merchant ships.

Such a commander is very thoughtful and will make full use of all favorable conditions around him to win and escape bad luck. So he is more likely to choose to go west... Do you understand what I mean?"

The route planning was almost done, and Hong Tao finally threw down the square and compass and raised his head. However, while speaking, he lit a cigar and blew smoke at Settle at close range, making the latter frown more and more, but he could not get angry.

"…Is there a necessary connection between rich experience and heading west?" Settle couldn't figure it out in the first place, and now that he was choked by the smoke, it was even more difficult for him to concentrate. He didn't think that the Spanish commander's background had anything to do with the current direction.

"The New World has their ports and armies, as well as mature shipping routes that have been explored for many years. Count Supero is more familiar with the waters around the New World. If they encounter a strong enemy and must choose a direction to retreat, they should go west. Is that what your majesty means?"

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Cohen couldn't help it, so he took the cigar handed over by the emperor and helped the young captain out. At the same time, he had to admit that the emperor was really smart, and he always looked at things more comprehensively than others and reacted faster.

He was also very familiar with sailing, and seemed to know the situation in the New World. If it weren't for the reminder just now, I wouldn't have thought that the Spanish fleet was more likely to go south or west. Now that I think about it carefully, my analysis does make sense.

"…If Commander Yan was unable to fight against the enemy ships that outnumbered him by several times, and chose to retreat, then wouldn't he have gone south?" But Setel was not convinced. Especially as a fleet commander, he did not want to appear so incompetent in front of all the officers, even if it might contradict the emperor.

(End of this chapter)