At the end of Qin, I became a son of the plane

Chapter 613, War between the Silver Fleet and Pirates

October 40, 10th year of the Han calendar, off the coast of Liaodong.

A huge fleet rose and fell with the waves, and its lead ship was particularly spectacular. The five masts on the ship formed a huge canvas group, which caught the wind from all directions and allowed it to move forward quickly. Its huge body crushed the waves like a mountain. Under the scouring of the waves, the deck of the warship flashed with cold light, and at the highest point of the warship, a huge Tang character fluttered in the wind.

Sitting on the deck, Tang King Xu Aiguo was bored and was watching the seagulls around the warship through a telescope.

"This is too boring. Is it possible that there are no heroes in the world who dare to rob our army? Weren't they very arrogant before? Why have they disappeared now?"

Cao Qiu said, "Your Majesty, the tonnage of your flagship is 7000 tons, which is higher than the tonnage of the main battleships of our Han Dynasty. It also has 30mm alloy armor plates. The pirates' guns can't even penetrate the armor plates, not to mention the 180 steel cannons on the ship. Those pirate ships can't even withstand a round of shooting. Even fools should have learned their lesson after two rounds of beatings. How dare those pirates show up?"

Zhou Ce at the side also said: "Those pirates are just a group of people who want to gain something without working. They are not the heroes that Your Highness is talking about. If there is a hero, it should be us, the princes who have opened up the world for the Han Dynasty."

Xu Aiguo looked at Zhou Ce with a stern face and pouted, "How boring!"

After decades of cultivation in the New World, the development of the New World by the Han Dynasty is now on the right track. Now, the Han Dynasty transports hundreds of thousands of people, hundreds of thousands of tons of steel products, daily necessities mainly cloth, and various high-tech machinery to the New World every year.

The New World imports dozens of tons of gold and thousands of tons of silver to the Han Dynasty every year (historically, Spain plundered more than 200 tons of silver from the New World every year, so it is not an exaggeration to multiply it fivefold here), millions of tons of fertilizers, and other raw materials such as rubber and sodium cinnamon. The complementary advantages of trade between the two sides are extremely obvious.

The ports of the New World and the northern coast of the Han Dynasty are already bustling with ships, and maritime trade is extremely prosperous.

Correspondingly, the pirates in the Pacific are breeding extremely rampantly. The New World is too vast, and the Pacific is too broad. There are too many uninhabited islands in between that the Chinese have no power to develop. These uninhabited islands have become bases for these lawless pirates. Many large pirate bases even have complete artillery production lines and pirate ship production lines. Looking at the vast market and complete logistics bases in the Pacific, the Pacific pirates are changing almost every year, and are developing at a crazy speed of expanding by an order of magnitude every five years.

Now, in each ocean, a pirate king is to be elected. The scale of pirates in the Pacific Ocean is well-deserved to be the leader. Pirates in other regions are hunted down by the Han Navy and have nowhere to go. Only the Pacific Ocean is too vast. The local pirates have developed the industry into a complete industrial chain with supply, construction, and sale of stolen goods. It is difficult for a Yinzhou fleet alone to guard such a vast sea area.

The trade between the New World and the Han Dynasty was extremely frequent, and most of the goods were of extremely high value, but what attracted the pirates the most was the silver fleet from the New World to the Han Dynasty.

The Han Dynasty's smelting technology and the scale of its immigration far exceeded those of historical Spain, so the scale of its silver fleet also far exceeded that of historical Spain. Almost every six months, the major princes of the New World would concentrate the gold and silver they refined in the Northern Yinzhou Governor's Office.

Then the warships of the Yinzhou fleet escorted the gold and silver to the Han homeland. The total value of the gold and silver carried by such a silver fleet was close to 10 billion coins.

Whenever such a fleet appears, it will cause pirates around the world to go crazy. In this era of precious metal currency, 10 billion coins is a fortune that is enough to rival a country and can drive any force crazy. After all, the fiscal revenue of countries around the world that can exceed this number is only slightly more than two hands.

But such a big boss is not so easy to defeat. Escaping death is not enough to describe how dangerous it is. If you want to get close to the legendary ship full of gold and silver, you must first cross the firepower network composed of more than a dozen main battleships and thousands of artillery pieces of the Han Dynasty. These artillery pieces are enough to turn any pirate ship into pieces in the Pacific Ocean.

Even if they managed to break through such a tight firepower network and get close to the silver warships, since they were there to rob money, it was impossible for them to attack these ships with artillery. They could only board the warships and eliminate the guards on them.

At this time, the pirates will be facing a group of 500 elite marines. Trying to snatch the gold and silver from these 1 rifles is almost a suicidal act, because in the next minute, you will be on the narrow deck and be hit by more than 5000 bullets.

The Han Dynasty had been cultivating the New World for more than 10 years, and the Silver Fleet appeared more than 30 times. Each time, it was a purge of pirates in the Pacific region by the Yinzhou Fleet, because at this moment countless pirates would come to the door on their own, and then be blown into slag by the Yinzhou Fleet's artillery. The captured pirates would be exiled to Yinzhou, and they would dig for gold and silver in the Nanzhou mining area until they died, which could be considered a worthy death for them.

But even with such a high mortality rate and such serious consequences, it still attracts a large number of pirates to gather every year. Even pirates from other oceans would rush to the scene after hearing the news, wanting to seize this priceless wealth. At one time, the largest number of pirates from all over the world assembled 2000 pirate ships, with a total of cannons, and tens of thousands of pirates besieged the Silver Fleet at that time.

At that time, this group of pirates was full of confidence. They thought they had gathered the elite pirates from all over the world. The number of their artillery was twice that of the Silver Fleet, and the number of their soldiers was more than five times, so they could fight against the Silver Fleet.

But these pirates were severely crushed by the Han people's steel cannons. More than a hundred of the two hundred pirate ships were sunk, which frightened the pirates so much that the remaining pirate ships fled in all directions. If they had not been guarding the silver fleet, most of the pirate ships that escaped would have been blown to pieces.

After this battle, pirates around the world were depressed for a while, and the security of trade routes around the world was significantly improved.

But pirates are a group of people who only care about food and not fights. Within two years, they resumed their attacks on the Silver Fleet.

The pirates' pursuit of the Silver Fleet is also a good thing for the Yinzhou Fleet. With these pirates, they can continue to make achievements. The promotion rate of the Yinzhou Fleet is higher than that of the other three fleets combined. The captains of other fleets also like to be transferred to the Yinzhou Fleet to accumulate military merits.

But if you defend for too long, you will lose. Once, the silver fleet encountered a huge storm, which gave the pirates an opportunity to take advantage of the chaos. They stole a silver warship and took away 500 million coins of precious metals. This incident caused a sensation around the world.

This incident gave great encouragement to pirates around the world, just like a god with a health bar. As long as there is a chance of success once, it will definitely happen a second time. Those who can become pirates are all unruly people. If their peers can do it, they can do it too. Because of this incident, more pirates robbed the silver fleet.

This incident also caused a huge sensation in the Han Dynasty. Han novelists wrote hundreds of novels because of this incident, and even the story was compiled into a vernacular novel among the people. Therefore, the pirates in the Pacific Ocean were one level higher than the pirates in other regions.

This time, the silver fleet led by Tang King Xu Aiguo was the largest in more than a decade. All the major princes took out their most elite warships, because this time they were escorting a fortune that was as valuable as their family assets.

One hundred tons of gold and five hundred tons of silver, with a total value of more than 60 billion yuan. This wealth was not available in any other country except the Han Dynasty. It was the deposit that all the princes of the New World brought to the Han Dynasty in order to build the railway.

Since the formation of this huge fleet, it has attracted the attention of pirates all over the world. These pirates have gathered from all over the world in major pirate bases in the Pacific.

Just half a month after Xu Aiguo and his crew set out, they were ambushed by a pirate group consisting of 150 warships.

But these pirates were naturally easily defeated by the coalition fleet of the princes, and more than ten thousand pirates were captured.

But what Xu Aiguo and his men never expected was that half a month later, the pirates once again assembled a pirate group consisting of more than 300 warships, and these pirates attacked the fleet of the coalition forces in an overwhelming manner.

The two sides fought for a whole day and night, and the artillery of both sides was blasted red. The coalition fleet of the princes directly sank more than 200 pirate ships, causing more than % casualties among the pirates, which completely frightened them and forced them to flee in all directions.

After this battle, even Xu Aiguo looked up to these pirates. Their greed for wealth even outweighed their fear of death. Even in the Han Dynasty, few elite troops dared to say that they could withstand 70% casualties. "Be alert, something's wrong." The soldier sitting on the mast shouted.

Afterwards, he used a telescope to carefully observe the situation in the distance and said, "There are pirate ships coming, 1, 2, 3." The scout made a rough estimate and then said, "This time the enemy's pirate ships are more than 600, and new pirate ships are constantly appearing in the rear sight range."

Xu Aiguo was shocked but also a little surprised. He said, "More than 600 pirate ships. I guess all the pirates in the world are here this time."

Including the pirate ships they had sunk twice before, the number of pirate ships besieging them reached thousands. You have to know that even the four major fleets of the Han Dynasty, plus the scattered warships on the mainland, only had more than 500 ships.

The number of pirates is twice that of Han people. Of course, there is a huge difference in quality, but this number is already considerable.

But Xu Aimin's estimation was not wrong. With 60 billion yuan worth of gold and silver, not to mention the pirates, even other countries in the world wanted to rob and get a piece of the pie. However, they knew that they could not do this. As long as the Han people knew about it, their countries would be torn to pieces by the Han artillery.

But for these pirates, there is no such worry. After completing this deal, they can retire and enjoy their retirement. Although the Han Dynasty is powerful, there are still other countries in the world that are not under the control of the Han Dynasty. As long as they get this money, they will retire, buy a large estate and become slave owners in Daqinzhou.

Xu Aiguo and others immediately grabbed the telescope and ran to the head of the deck, looking into the distance. They saw countless pirate ships and pirate flags representing skulls.

Cao Qiu looked at the countless pirate ships in the telescope, and said with a hint of anger in panic: "What are Peng Yue, Luan Bu and others doing? We are already close to the Liaodong Sea of ​​the Han Dynasty, and there are so many pirate ships. Are the four fleets of the Han Dynasty just for show? Let these pirates kill their way into the heart of the Han Dynasty. If they land on the mainland of the Han Dynasty, how will Peng Yue, Luan Bu and others explain to His Majesty and the people of the world?"

To the Silver Fleet, pirate ships were nothing more than annoying flies. What frightened them the most were the unexpected storms and undercurrents in the Pacific Ocean. These bad weather conditions caused far more damage to the Han Silver Fleet than the pirate ships. So for safety, the Han Silver Fleet sailed northward along the Yinzhou continent, then turned around after approaching the Arctic region, and sailed from north to south in the Liaodong region all the way to Linzi County.

The advantage of this route is safety, but the disadvantage is that as long as you block this route, you can intercept the Silver Fleet.

Cao Qiu was so angry because these pirates dared to rob them near the mainland of the Han Dynasty. You should know that in the past, pirates robbed the silver fleet mostly in the first half of the voyage, relying on the Yinzhou continent. If these pirates dared to approach the mainland of the Han Dynasty, the North Sea Fleet would bomb them to the point where nothing would be left.

Such a large group of pirates was unprecedented. The fleets of the coalition of princes had only about a hundred ships in total, and 12 of them were escorting gold and silver. They could not go to the battlefield. In the end, only 90 warships could go to the battlefield, while the enemy had more than 600 ships, which was 6 to 7 times their number. Even though the coalition of princes had an advantage in firepower and tonnage, the gap in numbers still made him worried about the outcome of this battle.

Xu Aiguo said calmly: "Naval battles cannot be won by numbers. Our warships are larger than these pirates, our cannons can shoot farther than these pirates, and our armor is thicker than these pirate ships. We can defeat them all even if we fly them like kites. Order the warships in the rear to stop advancing. Warships of 3000 tons and above, prepare to seize the upper wind."

"Yes!" The naval soldiers conveyed Xu Aiguo's order with flag signals, and the warships of the coalition of princes began to change formation. The small warships moved to the center of the team, and the large warships protected the periphery. More than a dozen flagships of 3000 tons and above began to prepare to seize the wind at the front of the team.

On the opposite side, dozens of pirates united as a group and rushed towards the Silver Fleet like crazy, because they knew that this place was too close to the Han mainland and they did not have much time left. If their movements were noticed by the North Sea Fleet, they would all have to die here.

After the first two rounds of attrition warfare, these pirate groups have roughly realized that the strength of the coalition fleet of the princes is very strong, so strong that they have no way to defeat it.

But logistics is the biggest flaw of this coalition. After two rounds of attrition warfare, they estimated that the coalition's artillery could only fire dozens of rounds at most. Even if it was fired to the limit, it was estimated that at most 300 of their warships could be sunk, and the remaining half of their warships could enjoy the fattest prey.

So these pirate groups are fighting for time and trying to consume the resources. They plan to consume the warships of the coalition forces.

As the two fleets were getting closer, the soldier sitting on the mast yelled excitedly, "The imperial warships have appeared."

Half a day later, the scouting soldier saw the picture on the flag clearly and said, "It is the main force of the North Sea Fleet and the South Sea Fleet. These pirates can't escape."

Cao Qiu said excitedly: "We are saved!"

Xu Aiguo's men used telescopes to look at the ocean in the distance. They could clearly see that behind the pirate group, there were two fleets quickly catching up and quickly surrounding the huge pirate group from two directions.

The pirates also found themselves surrounded, and they split into three groups. The left and right groups attached themselves to the South Sea Fleet and the North Sea Fleet respectively, while the remaining main force continued to rush towards the fleet of the princes' coalition. Even now, this group of pirates has not given up the idea of ​​robbing the silver fleet.

But reality soon taught this group of lawless pirates a lesson. The warships of the North Sea Fleet and the South Sea Fleet kept approaching the pirate ships, and then beams of flames emerged. After the flames hit the pirate ships, the pirate ships quickly caught fire and there was no way to extinguish the fire. In less than half an incense stick of time, a pirate ship was burned to the sky, forcing the pirates on the ship to jump into the water one after another, and then the pirate ship was burned and sunk.

These pirates also thought about fighting back. They used their own artillery to continuously attack the warships of the two fleets, but their shells were easily bounced off the armor plates on the warships.

At the same time, the Han warships will fire a few more flame bombs to make the counterattacking pirate ships sink faster.

The pirates discovered in despair that the Han warships were simply a dimensionality reduction attack. Their artillery could hardly cause casualties to the Han warships, and as long as the Han army's flame bombs were fired, it was only a matter of time before the ships sank.

The battle between the warships of both sides lasted only an hour when hundreds of pirate ships were hit by firebombs and sank. Hundreds of other pirate ships were frightened and hoisted white flags, lowered their sails, and waited to be captured by the Han fleet. Of course, there were also some unwilling pirate ships that wanted to escape, but all of them were hit by several incendiary bombs and quickly burned into a pile of slag on the sea.

At the same time, in the central group of pirates, 5 warships lowered their pirate flags and raised large flags with Chinese characters. Then these people attacked from the center and unscrupulously fired incendiary bombs at the surrounding pirates. In less than an incense stick of time, more than a dozen pirate ships were burning with raging flames.

This sudden accident caused the pirates to fall into chaos and they could no longer maintain their momentum of advancing.

Xu Aiguo said excitedly: "It turns out that the Han navy has already arranged spies. No wonder they dared to let such a large group of pirates approach the Han inland sea. General Luan just wanted to catch the turtle in the jar."

"Such a naval battle will surely go down in history, and we cannot be left out. All soldiers, listen up. Plug up the gaps through which these pirates escape. Today, I will annihilate them all in the Liaodong Sea."

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)