The wind blows from the South Sea

Chapter 147 Victory in the First Battle
The battlefield advantage quickly tilted towards the Nanyang Army. The Nanyang officers and soldiers who successfully broke through the river bank defense line quickly spread to both wings after consolidating the bridgehead position.

Facing the crazy counterattack of the Dutch army, the Nanyang Army's line of infantry responded with dense and hot volleys. Round after round of volleys continued, and the battlefield became white-hot in an instant.

After the cavalry successfully cleared the Dutch artillery positions, Major General Kane van Kerwijk knew that the end was over. He spat hard with reluctance and ordered the native servants to be held back while he himself led more than 1800 people. The white musketeers and the white militia of more than 3000 people quickly retreated and advanced rapidly in the direction of Bellick.

It was already the afterglow of dusk, and it was about to get dark.

Feng Guohui did not lead the army to advance rashly, but steadily commanded the musketeers to outflank the enemy on both sides, making dumplings of thousands of indigenous cannon fodder abandoned by the Dutch army in one fell swoop.

The battle ended before nightfall. Dozens of bonfires were lit on the battlefield. The captured indigenous soldiers passed by the ancient stone bridge dejectedly in groups and were escorted to the Nanyang Army field camp east of the bridge.

Some of the remaining indigenous prisoners stacked the captured guns, ammunition and field artillery in categories, cleaned the corpses and piled them together, poured kerosene on them and then lit them and burned them.

After it was completely burned, it was pushed directly into the Solo River.

In this hearty victory, the Nanyang Army wiped out 4328 enemies in the field, captured more than 5600 enemies, and killed and captured nearly 360 enemies, while losing only more than 97 people, including killed in action.

In this bridge battle
The most outstanding performance was the newly equipped Mini rifle. With its superior long range and high accuracy, it severely hit the Dutch army in actual combat and achieved an undoubted overwhelming advantage.

The whole camp was filled with the smell of meat, and the laughter and laughter of the officers and soldiers could be heard from time to time.

Eat for a while
Feng Guohui put down the nearly finished tomahawk steak and picked up a white towel to wipe his hands. The other senior officers subconsciously put down the food in their hands and picked up napkins to wipe their hands and mouths.

After the victory, the atmosphere in the military camp was very good. From top to bottom, there was an atmosphere of pride and lofty military honor. All units had a high desire to fight and were full of confidence.

"The commander is mighty, our army will win!" All the generals said while holding up their wine glasses.

There were no large livestock such as horses in the East Indies, and naturally there were no cavalry. After Spanish, Dutch, and British colonists successively set foot in Southeast Asia, horses adapted to tropical climates were introduced from all over the world to breed.

The second is the role of cavalry raids. In seizing the ancient stone bridge and raiding the Dutch artillery positions, the Dutch troops were caught off guard and added a lot of chips to win the final battle.

Dozens of large pots were simmering with boiling broth. These were more than a hundred war horses lost in the battle. After being skinned, they were cut into large pieces of horse meat, horse intestines, and horse hearts and were thrown into the pot. Add spices and salt and cook to make a thick white broth.

Feng Guohui sat at the table with a rosy face, picked up the red wine glass in a very good mood, and said;

The guards brought the cooked food to the table. There were not many varieties of dishes in the military camp, and the main focus was on large portions to satisfy one's needs.

The cavalry confrontation between the two sides can be said to be the first cavalry battle in the entire Java Island since ancient times.

Feng Guohui picked up the red wine glass and said to everyone, "Come and drink another drink for tomorrow's victory."

Its performance is remarkable.

After setting up two regiment-level field camps west of Qiao, most of the main force of the Nanyang Army withdrew to the original field camp east of Qiao to rest and recuperate. The camp was filled with an atmosphere of joy after victory.

"Come, brothers, drink to the glorious victory of our army's bridgehead battle. We will break camp and set off early tomorrow morning, aiming directly at Bellick."

The large pieces of tomahawk steak are braised and the aroma is overflowing. They are soft and juicy. The seafood soup has daikon cubes added to it, which is really fresh and delicious.

"Okay, cheers!" Feng Guohui said, picking up the wine glass and taking a sip. The other generals followed suit and couldn't help laughing.

The Nanyang Army also captured more than 300 horses in this battle, including Arabian horses, Quarter Horses and Appaloosa horses from North America, most of which came from the British colonies.

In the big tent of the headquarters in the middle of the camp
The long table was covered with snow-white tablecloths, and beautiful porcelain vases were filled with colorful flowers. A group of senior generals were sitting around the table, and goblets of red wine had been poured.

Some horses were used to tow artillery carriages or carriages, and some were used to ride horses. All of them were expensive.

Each of the soldiers was given a piece of flatbread weighing a kilogram, and they lined up to fill the broth with iron lunch boxes in their hands. The lunch boxes were filled with broth and were carried aside. A group of soldiers sat on the ground and talked. It was a pleasant meal.

This much horse meat was enough to feed the entire army for three days.

"Commander, the Nanyang Army will be victorious." The senior officers raised their glasses one after another.

Feng Guohui took a sip to himself, put down his glass, looked around the crowd and said;
“If we fight today, Gui Lao will definitely be scared.

Its total force of 20,000 troops was reduced by half today, and almost all the native cannon fodder was lost.

I predict that the white ghost army will not fight me head-on in the field, but will definitely huddle in Bellick City and rely on the repaired strong fortress to deal with me.

Tomorrow's battle will probably be a tough battle.

The Surabaya Division that took the lead in attacking today..."

"I'm here, please give me the command, Commander-in-Chief." Major General Wu Siwen heard the Commander-in-Chief call him, and immediately stood up and answered resoundingly.

"Sit down, I just want to explain tomorrow's offensive mission."

"Well, the Surabaya Division Headquarters and my Marshal's Guards Corps will serve as the reserve force of the entire army during tomorrow's siege battle to suppress the army's position."

"I will obey the command of the commander-in-chief." Major General Wu Siwen and Lieutenant Colonel Fan Dali both stood up straight and answered crisply.

Feng Guohui waved to them to sit down, and then looked at Colonel Feng Zhaohui, who was the deputy commander of the Semarang Division and was responsible for leading the troops of the Semarang Division.

Colonel Feng Zhaohui immediately stood up straight and said loudly, "Commander, please give me instructions."

"Your troops will be the main force in tomorrow's siege. With more than 5,000 indigenous prisoners, I will attack the city repeatedly to find the weak points in the Dutch defense and strive to break it in one fell swoop."

"Follow your orders, everyone in the Semarang division will fight bravely to take the lead. I am invincible."

"Okay, you must have this kind of murderous intent." Feng Guohui nodded approvingly.

He vigorously placed relatives of the Feng family in the Nanyang Army, including Colonel Feng Zhaohui, the deputy commander of the Semarang Division, and Colonel Feng Zhaocai, the deputy commander of the Yanwang Division. He also had his own soldier captain Wang Erzhu, who is now the captain of the Thoreau Task Force. The rank of colonel.

Feng Guohui then looked at Colonel Hu Huashan, the commander of the artillery regiment. Colonel Hu Huashan immediately stood up, held his head high and said, "Please give me instructions, commander-in-chief."

"Your artillery regiment must be prepared. All 27 field guns captured this time will be handed over to you. Be prepared to red-paint the barrels.

From tomorrow morning
In addition to transporting two days of rations, everything else is transported to the commander to transport gunpowder and artillery shells to supply the needs of the front line.

This commander will gather more than a hundred field guns to crack open Bellick's turtle shell and crush it into slag. As long as this gate is opened, the road from Belik to Purwokardo will be unimpeded, and the army can reach Bandung directly and achieve a remarkable victory.

The purpose of this war is to severely attack the ghost colonists and make them sit down at the negotiating table, which is of great significance.

So I hope..."

As soon as these words came out, the senior officers sitting around the dining table all stood up, stood upright, and said in unison: "Please give me instructions, Commander-in-Chief."

"Tomorrow we will fight hard. Everyone will advance without retreating. Break this turtle shell hard for me."

"I will obey the command of the commander-in-chief. All personnel will make progress without retreating and break this turtle shell." The officers replied in unison, their tone was sonorous and powerful, full of confidence.

Belik is a mountain city located between Purwokardo and Saladiga. It was a battleground for military strategists during the ancient Kingdom of Mataram and served as the hinterland artery connecting the east and west of Java.

In the history of Java

In an era when maritime transport was not yet developed, important mountain cities such as Belik, Salatiga, and Solo were like a string of pearls, connecting the east and west of Java.

The ancient arterial roads and numerous fortresses connecting these cities were the only places that ancient kingdoms could pass through to divide their respective regions and attack each other.

After the Dutch colonists arrived in Batavia in the 16th century, they used advanced navigation technology to conduct cross-point operations, established coastal ports one after another, and subsequently destroyed the rule of the ancient indigenous kingdom.

The importance of this inland hinterland ancient road has become increasingly dim in the course of historical development, and has been replaced by fast sea transportation.

Today
The rise of the Nanyang Army and its maritime power forced the Dutch colonists to rebuild ancient roads and fortresses, which became an important basis for their military operations.

There is an ancient city wall surrounding Bellick City. After more than half a year of reinforcement and repairs by the Dutch colonists, it has regained its strong defensive capabilities.

Defending against the city will greatly weaken the weapons advantage of the attacking Nanyang Army.

Although the current strength of the Dutch army is only about 1.4, there are about 5 whites among them. They are generally equipped with French Republic Type 1815 and Dutch M muskets, and their firepower is not weak.

There should be some artillery in the city. The total number cannot exceed 20, but they can pose a considerable threat.

The Nanyang Army besieged the fortress held by 1.6 Dutch troops with 1.4 troops, and had almost no advantage in terms of strength.

That's why Feng Guohui ordered more than 5,000 indigenous prisoners to attack the city tomorrow, intending to find the enemy's weak points and attack them in one fell swoop.

If things don't go well

Then we can only use earth methods, build high platforms with earth, dig holes and blast city gates, build siege machinery, etc., and slowly figure it out.

According to estimates of the Dutch mainland reinforcement fleet, it will not be able to reach Java until the end of the month at the earliest, and July or August at the latest. There is still time.

As long as the turtle shell of Bellick is broken in one fell swoop before the arrival of the Dutch mainland reinforcement fleet and the battle line is pushed to the edge of Bandung, the Nanyang Army's unassailable superiority in the entire Java Island can be established.

There are approximately 1.3 million residents in this area. If it can be brought under control, then the Nanyang Army will control more than half of the island's population, nearly 60%.

The occupied area is close to 80% (referring only to Java Island, excluding other islands), which further enhances the room for maneuver.

Feng Guohui had no delusions about deciding the outcome in one battle. With the current strength of the Nanyang Army, taking too big a step would cause trouble.

He needs to find a balanced path between military expansion and economic development, take more time to accumulate knowledge, expand the Chinese immigrant population, and further develop the industrial economy.

The Nanyang Army needs time to grow. At the current expansion rate of 3.5 men per month, the entire army will expand to 4 by June next year and exceed by the end of the year.

It takes time to grow stronger step by step.

The strategy planned by Feng Guohui is to eliminate as much of the existing white ghost army as possible before reinforcements from the Netherlands arrive.

Let his replenishment never keep up with the speed of consumption.

This makes it clear that the Kingdom of the Netherlands is tens of thousands of kilometers away from the South Ocean. Every time a cross-oceanic expedition is launched, a huge amount of money and war materials are consumed.

The Kingdom of the Netherlands first needs to recruit soldiers with high salaries, afford dispatch fees, settlement fees, board and lodging and armed training costs, and then organize a large fleet for a transoceanic expedition. It also needs to provide medical treatment and withstand the long journey of half a year.

On average, each soldier was worth thousands of guilders.

1 soldiers is 1000 million guilders, and this is only the cost of the Kingdom of the Netherlands sending to the East Indies colony. It does not include the training of the soldiers after their arrival, food, accommodation and medical treatment to adapt to the climate, as well as various expenses for participating in the war.

Overall
This huge cost is unbearable for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, a small European country with a population of only three to four million. The limit is probably to send less than 10,000 people.

No matter how many people there are, the Dutch royal family will go bankrupt.

The Nanyang Army did not need it. Feng Guohui only needed to send people to the mainland of China to promote Java Island as a paradise under Chinese governance. When they came, they could share land, women, production materials and other preferential treatment.

Although it is a bit exaggerated, it actually helped the Chinese immigrants to establish a foothold and be able to enjoy the fruits of the harvest in a few months.

Immigrants from the coastal areas of the mainland will pay their own shipping fees and arrive here continuously. The Nanyang Army can directly recruit them on the spot without wasting a piece of silver.

Comparing the two, the efforts of both parties are not at the same level. This huge cost is unbearable for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, a small European country with a population of only three to four million. The limit is probably to send less than 10,000 people.

No matter how many people there are, the Dutch royal family will go bankrupt.

Whenever he thinks of this, Feng Guohui will smile knowingly; it’s so good to enjoy the shade against the big tree!

The current situation in South Asia is that the two old colonists, Britain and France, are joining forces to open up new colonies in South Asia and form their own sphere of influence.

France mainly used its troops in the Indochina Peninsula. Based on the current Saigon Governor's Palace, France went north to invade Haiphong and Hanoi, captured Cambodia and Laos, and eliminated the ancient kingdoms in the Indochina Peninsula.

Britain mainly used troops on both wings of the Indian subcontinent to launch the first and second Anglo-Burmese wars southward to create an isolation zone of French colonial power.

Invading Afghanistan westward, relying on the barren and numerous plateaus and mountains here, an insurmountable high wall was built to block the forces of Tsarist Russia from moving south from Central Asia.

World powers such as Britain and France are too busy to take care of declining former colonial powers such as the Netherlands and Spain. This is a favorable international opportunity at the moment.

(End of this chapter)