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Chapter 304 Banditry in the South China Sea 3
For merchant ships, having a map can save some time and manpower, but for the army, it is more than that. It is equivalent to carrying a local guide who will never lie at any time and anywhere.Before the team even sets off, they can design and arrange all the combat steps according to what is written on the map, which will be very useful.

And this was just a small test for the staff. When they left Tsushima Island and approached the coast of Japan, they started to point fingers again. They took out a sketched map and measured it with a sextant.

Then tell the pilot categorically how many ports there will be when sailing eastward and what ports there will be when sailing southward, not only the direction but also the distance and port size.

The reason why Yuan Keli was able to complete the tasks assigned by the emperor well and quickly was partly due to the well-trained navy, the use of battleships, and sharp artillery, and partly due to the precise guidance of his staff.

There is no need to wander around or go ashore to catch a guide. Just look at the Kan map and get it right.Fire the cannon as soon as you enter the harbor, set the ships and houses on fire, then raise the sails and go straight to the next one. It is more convenient than visiting my father-in-law's house.

From then on, all the generals in the Navy, both Marine and Marine Guards, began to sneak into the rooms of the staff officers when they had nothing to do. The sweet-tongued ones said more good things, the stupid ones said more. Help with the work.

Such proactive attentiveness is not to flatter the emperor through his staff, but to learn from his masters. How to use a sextant to measure and draw pictures is not expected. Just the knowledge of geometry mentioned by the navigator is daunting, but learning It shouldn't be too difficult to learn how to read pictures.

After learning this skill, in the future, regardless of whether there are advisers around, you can lead troops to fight in unfamiliar areas with the help of a well-drawn map. It is good to increase the probability of victory, but it is even more necessary to reduce one's own risks.

The staff officers did not push the envelope, but they did not teach privately. Instead, they consulted Yuan Keli and set up a private school in the navy.No matter in the army or on a ship, as long as there is a staff officer, classes can be held anytime and anywhere to teach how to use maps.

Yuan Keli Gengjue, after the staff started taking classes, he put the use of maps in the officer standards with a stroke of a pen. He was still ranked among the top. If you can't learn it, you will not only be unable to be promoted, but you will not be able to keep your current position.

"Commander, according to the latest report from the scouts, our landing point is 33 miles away from Thanh Hoa City. There are 7 villages along the way. No Annan army has been found."

No, the temporary tent had just been set up, and several young staff officers had already started working in an orderly manner. They quickly compiled the collected intelligence and sent it over.

"How is the road condition? Can the artillery car pass?" Li Ruzhang was not polite. He walked to the map table and looked at the various marks sketched on it. After having a general idea of ​​the overall situation, he began to think about specific combat methods.

"...Not so good. Both Thang Long and Thanh Hoa are located in the Red River Delta. They have flat terrain and dense rivers. They have a tropical monsoon climate. There is abundant precipitation in the rainy season and dense tropical jungles. Fortunately, it is the dry season now, with the northeast monsoon blowing and rain. Not much, the ground is a bit hard, I can try to prepare some more wooden boards.”

A staff officer took out a small book from his pocket. After flipping through a few pages, he seemed to have found the exact answer. His expression and tone immediately became very confident, and he believed every word he said.

"What else did your Majesty say above?" Li Ruzhang has been coveting this little book for a long time. Whenever the staff can't make up their mind, they will take it out and look through it. There is a high probability that they will find a solution. It is like a treasure bag. "..." The young staff officer did not refuse. He stretched out his hand and turned the small book over and lifted it up.

"...Come here, change your clothes!" Li Ruzhang felt ecstatic in his heart. He used the light to get closer and watch hard, then his face darkened, he turned his head and roared at Baihu who was also stretching his neck to peek behind him.

The notebook is full of words, written neatly, but I don’t recognize any of them.The Navy had already begun to learn Chinese, or Latin, a year ago, but these words were obviously not Latin. They were horizontal, vertical, hooked, crooked, and circular, and looked more like the patterns carved by craftsmen on gold and silverware.

Half a quarter of an hour later, Li Ruzhang and the guards changed into Ming Dynasty official uniforms, raised the ceremonial guard and flags, and, surrounded by two hundred marines, walked out of the woods onto the dirt road leading to Qinghua City.

According to the plan formulated by Yuan Keli, the raid on Shenglong Mansion was divided into three stages.The first step is to successfully land near Thanh Hoa City, which has been achieved so far.The second step is to deceive the Annan government and march towards Thang Long Palace through Thanh Hoa City without any bloodshed.

If you want to achieve this step, you can't just rely on sharp guns and artillery, you have to use some brains.The method Yuan Keli came up with was to pretend to be an imperial envoy of the Ming Dynasty. Regardless of whether the local government believed it or not, there was a high probability that they would not attack directly. They would definitely send troops to escort him and send someone to Shenglong Mansion to deliver the message.

But these messengers would never reach Thang Long Palace, and would be intercepted by scouts who bypassed Thanh Hoa City along the way.The first Marine Corps will deal with the escorting Annan army, and at the same time surround Thanh Hoa City and cut off its connection with the outside world.

At this time, the fake imperial envoy and most of the marines will march towards Thang Long Palace along the official road, and they will arrive in about three days.If you can deceive the towns you encounter along the way, attack and occupy them if you can't get past them, leaving some marines to defend them and keep the retreat route open.

The general idea of ​​​​the battle is to seize time, take advantage of the shortcomings of few roads and inconvenient transportation in Annan, and rush to arrive before the defenders of Thang Long Palace get the news, so as to catch them by surprise.

The third step is how to enter Shenglong Mansion. You can still cheat if you can, but if you can't cheat, you can attack by force.Then, of course, the tigers will infiltrate the sheep flock, and they will start to fight. Who will attack the imperial city, who will plunder the warehouses, who will set fire to it, and who will clear out the remaining enemies have detailed plans and have done corresponding training.

There was only one night in Thang Long Province. Regardless of success or failure, the entire army had to evacuate. They also followed the official road back to the landing site near Thanh Hoa City, then boarded the boat and left, heading straight to the next target, Hue City.Based on the speed of the battleship, it is estimated that the messenger from Thang Long Palace was still halfway there when Hue City was burned to the ground.

As for whether pretending to be an imperial envoy of the Ming Dynasty would attract criticism from the Ming Dynasty court and use it to impeach the Navy Governor Yuan Keli?Or do you suspect that the emperor is behind the scenes?
This thing would never happen, because it was not the Ming Navy that attacked the capital of Annan, burned, killed, and looted, but the giant bandits of the South China Sea.Everything the pirates said must be lies, and the seals, flags, and ceremonial guards were also false.

In this way, the Ming Emperor had more reasons to send troops to exterminate them without delay.He actually dared to pretend to be an imperial envoy of the Ming Dynasty and secretly forged the imperial seal. This was no longer an ordinary pirate, but an attempt to rebel. Anyone who dared to stop him was an accomplice!
(End of this chapter)