Traveling through the late Ming Dynasty to promote Chinese civilization

Chapter 235 Battle of Liaoluo Bay (5)

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Meanwhile, after receiving Zheng Zhilong's order, Zheng Hongkui regretfully directed the gunboats to temporarily halt their bombardment and disperse to both sides, making way for Zheng Zhihu. A trusted aide leaned over and said, "Fourth Master, what a pity. If we had continued fighting like this, even if our gunboats didn't decide the outcome, we could have sunk at least three or four ships. Second Master would have taken most of the credit, tsk tsk..."

Zheng Hongkui glared and shouted, "Shut up! You dare to question the decision of the head of the household? There are reasons why the Second Master was sent out."

The confidant shrank back, meekly replying, "Yes, yes, I misspoke..."

Although he reprimanded his men, Zheng Hongkui secretly agreed. Looking at the red-haired warships wrecked by the burning ships, he sighed inwardly. His elder brother's move was certainly aimed at seizing a few small ships to strengthen the Zheng family, but wasn't it also giving his second brother a chance to achieve great merit and further solidify his position within the family? His second brother had always been close to his elder brother and was the most favored among the brothers—something others could only envy, and he himself had no right to complain. But this was a battlefield, where opportunities were fleeting. His elder brother had been somewhat reckless, choosing to use fists when knives could resolve the conflict.

On the outermost Qiongzhou fleet, Gao Jie observed the entire battle from the flagship "Bofu" using a monocular telescope. When he saw the change in Zheng's tactics, he shook his head regretfully, put down the telescope, and said to Liu Ye, "Originally, Zheng Yiguan could have finished the battle in one fell swoop, but he was greedy. It seems that he wanted to use boarding action to seize the Dutch warships. This decision has brought unpredictability to the battle - now I can't judge who will win."

Liu Ye said calmly, "There's an old saying among our ancestors: 'Greed knows no bounds.' The human heart is never satisfied. Zheng Zhilong wanted to maximize the value of his victory. He not only wanted to defeat the Dutch and Liu Xiang, but also wanted to possess real Western-style warships—presumably to deal with my fast ships and powerful cannons in the future—but excessive greed will always come at a price."

"What do we do now, General? Should we join the battle directly or continue to observe?" Gao Jie looked at Liu Ye, waiting for his next instructions.

Liu Ye observed the battle situation through his monoculars and then replied, "The chaotic fighting is not in our favor. We cannot participate in the battle under such circumstances. It's not time to place our bets yet. Let's wait and see."

As Zheng Zhihu led his warships, laden with fresh troops, toward the inner battlefield, the Dutch fleet was already in complete chaos.

The thirteen Dutch warships, armed merchant ships, were completely engulfed in flames. Any firefighting efforts were futile, and the sailors abandoned the ship, jumping overboard to swim to other warships. Sinking was only a matter of time. The Wiegand was severely damaged in the artillery duel; its mast was broken, several holes were found in its waterline, and most of its deck crew were killed or wounded. It was rendered immobile, with only the gunners in the intermediate compartments continuing to fire in a final stand. The other warships also suffered varying degrees of damage, with fires at the bow and stern or numerous bullet holes in their hulls, though not as severe as those on the Brock Hillswin and the Wiegand.