Chapter 1109 Climbing Liaohai Road

The Miaodao Islands are composed of 32 large and small islands. They are located at the intersection of the Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea, in the sea area between the Jiaodong Peninsula and the Liaodong Peninsula, with a total area of ​​more than 50 square kilometers. You can see it from the distance on Danya Mountain in Dengzhou

The Temple Island Islands are like gems inlaid on the blue waves.

The archipelago is divided into three island groups from north to south. The North Island group includes Nanhuangcheng Island, Beihuangcheng Island, Daqin Island, Xiaoqin Island, etc. The middle island group includes Tuoji Island, Gaoshan Island, Ji Island, etc.

The island group includes Nan Changshan Island, Bei Changshan Island, Miao Island, Daheishan Island, Xiaoheishan Island, etc.

The legendary Penglai, Yingzhou, and Fangzhang Sea Three Sacred Mountains, among which Penglai Island refers to Nanchangshan Island, the largest island in the Miao Island Islands. According to records in "Historical Records", the emperors of Qin and Han Dynasty came to Danya Mountain in Dengzhou specially.

, praying for immortality to the Penglai Fairy Mountain in the sea.

Of course, what Wang Tom cares about is not these myths and legends spread among the people. What he values ​​​​is the role of the Miaodao Islands in the Liaoning Sea Channel. In the future, Haihan will enter the Liaodong region from the sea and control the Bohai and Yellow Sea waterways.

To a certain extent, we rely on these islands to build maritime strongholds and material transfer ports.

From the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, the imperial court used Denglai, Shandong as a strategic base and marched northward to Liaodong. In the fourth year of Hongwu, Ming generals Ma Yun and Ye Wang led their troops across the sea from Denglai, Shandong, to the north, occupying the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula, and then gradually

Advancing northward and westward, the entire territory of Liaodong was brought under the rule of the Ming Dynasty. However, Liaodong at that time had been war-torn for a long time, was vast and sparsely populated, and had insufficient material supplies. Therefore, military and logistical supplies had to rely on the sea lanes between Deng and Liaoning to be transferred from Shandong.

Therefore, the Shandong soldiers and their families were placed to garrison in Liaodong. For example, the Dingliao left guard in Liaoyang was composed of 5,600 Qingzhou soldiers, while the Dingliao right guard was all Laizhou soldiers.

It is precisely based on this close dependence and connection that when the National Judicial Supervision Department was established in the 29th year of Hongwu, the jurisdiction of Liaodong Dusi was organized into the Liaohai Dongning Branch Patrol, Judicial Supervision Affairs, under the Shandong Judicial Supervision Department

They were all under the jurisdiction of Shandong. Decades later during the Zhengtong period, the civil affairs of the entire Liaodong territory were officially assigned to the Liaohai Dongning branch under the Chief Secretary of Shandong.

In addition to the logistics transfer function, because the capital of the Ming Dynasty was still in Nanjing at the time, the Liaohai Road was also the main road from the capital to the Liaodong region. If you take the land route around Shanhaiguan, the journey will be thousands of miles longer, so in addition to transporting supplies,

The appointment and dismissal of officials in Liaodong and the exchange of envoys from North Korea were all transported through the Deng-Liao Sea Road. As a result, Dengzhou was upgraded from a state to a prefecture and gained a higher administrative status.

Although the Deng-Liao maritime transport played an important role in stabilizing the foundation of Liaodong rule in the early Ming Dynasty, after entering the middle Ming Dynasty, due to the northward migration of the capital, the conflict of regional interests between Deng-Liao and the imperial court's implementation of a sea ban, this maritime channel was

Gradually abandoned and eventually extinct, the Miaodao Islands were once occupied by refugees, deserters and pirates.

During the Wanli period, the border defense situation in Liaodong became increasingly severe. The imperial court had no choice but to order the reopening of shipping to Liaodong. Most of the materials and personnel needed to assist Liaodong landed in Shandong, which brought social stability and stability to this area.

Economic development has caused heavy pressure. However, such assistance failed to save the war situation in Liaodong. By the Tianqi Year, tens of thousands of refugees fled across the sea from Liaodong to Denglai, and civil regional conflicts became more and more serious.

These conflicts and grievances finally broke out in the fourth year of Chongzhen. The troops led by General Kong Youde of the Liao Army mutinied in Wuqiao and turned to attack various prefectures and counties in Shandong. As a large number of refugees from Liaodong were concentrated in Dengzhou City, it was Kong Youde's army.

At the starting point, after local residents learned of the Liao army's mutiny, they immediately launched a mass massacre of the Liao people in the city. After Kong Youde's troops broke the city, they also massacred the Dengzhou people in the city out of revenge. It was originally established in the early Ming Dynasty.

The mutual assistance relationship between Dengli and Liao ended in the tragedy of the soldiers and civilians of the two places killing each other.

In fact, before the Wuqiao mutiny, Sun Yuanhua, the governor of Denglai, and Wang Zheng, the military supervisor, were already preparing a battle plan to use Dengzhou as a strategic base to march to recapture Liaodong by sea. However, Kong Youde's rebellion completely disrupted his plan, and in 1633

He took a large number of men, horses and weapons across the sea and fled to Liaodong and surrendered to Hou Jin Dynasty. After that, he led his troops to capture Lushunkou on the Liaodong Peninsula, completely interrupting the sea route to Liaodong and having a profound impact on the subsequent wars of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

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Haihan's plan for the Liaodong region has actually been around for a long time. The Liaodong Peninsula is of great strategic significance for controlling Northeast Asia. It can be said to be Haihan's must-occupy territory in the future. However, due to the long distance, the main bases are all in the southern sea.

The Han army has always been beyond reach and can only advance northward step by step. One of the reasons for establishing a stronghold on the Jiaodong Peninsula is to prepare for the next move into the Liaodong Peninsula. The Bohai Strait and the Miaodao Islands in between are naturally

It has become the area that Haihan Navy will focus on for inspection next.

Early one morning at the end of August, a fleet of Haihan warships left Zhifu Bay, rounded the east corner of Zhifu Island, and then turned westward. Wang Tom personally led this fleet to conduct a survey of the coastal areas west of Zhifu Bay and the Bohai Strait.

inspection.

The distance from Zhifu Bay to the coast near Dengzhou City is only about 40 nautical miles. With the speed of the Haihan Fleet, it only takes more than half a day to get there. In order to avoid causing unnecessary panic, a distance of about 10 nautical miles is maintained between the fleet and the coastline.

Traveling a long distance, it is not easy to be discovered by the Ming army on the shore under the cover of sea fog. At present, the garrison in Dengzhou Water City has not been restored. There are only a few small-tonnage transportation ships, and they rarely go to sea to perform tasks, which is not enough to provide

The Haihan fleet poses a threat.

When there were still about ten nautical miles away from Dengzhou City, Wang Tom left the flagship and transferred to a reconnaissance boat, heading to the offshore waters to observe the location of Dengzhou Water City. However, due to weather conditions, it was difficult for him to clearly observe Dengzhou Water City through the telescope.

The channel leading into and out of the harbor in Zhou Shuicheng was not too close to alert the defenders, so they turned around and left in frustration.

However, this is not a setback for Wang Tom. After all, Dengzhou Water City is currently just an empty shell, and the potential threats are also very limited. The fleet's main investigation direction is still in the Bohai Strait north of Dengzhou.

The land at the north and south ends of the Bohai Strait is about 60 nautical miles apart. In the south, there are Miaodao Islands distributed vertically, which divide the strait into more than a dozen waterways such as Laotieshan Waterway, Changshan Waterway, and Dengzhou Waterway that connect the Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea. But now Dengden

Shipping along the Liao Channel has been cut off, and there are very few ships traveling in this sea area. In addition, last year Kong Youde's troops defected to Liaodong. In order to prevent Houjin spies from lurking near the coast of Dengzhou, the government has relocated all the people from the Miaodao Islands.

Enter the mainland and implement a defensive strategy of strengthening the walls and clearing the wilderness against these islands.

Of course, whether this method is really effective remains to be tested by time. After all, the Ming Dynasty lost the Liaodong Peninsula only last year, and Hou Jin may not be able to digest the newly occupied areas so quickly. Because of this, the navy led by Wang Tom can

Land on Changshan Island with confidence and boldness, and launch a comprehensive reconnaissance of the island.

Wang Tom also landed on Nanchangshan Island with the army. There are still many vacant houses on the island, but the few cultivated lands here are basically abandoned and have been overgrown with knee-high weeds and shrubs. Haihan Ministry of Defense

When we first planned to move north, this place was one of the alternative destinations. If Haihan were developed at its level, at least several thousand residents could be settled on this island with an area of ​​more than 12 square kilometers. The only problem is

This place is too close to Dengzhou City. It is so close that you can see the mainland across the sea when the weather is fine. It is really inconvenient to use your hands and feet in the early stage. Moreover, the harbor conditions are slightly worse than Zhifu Island, so in the end the military chose to contact the mainland directly.

Connected Zhifu Island.

There are sandbars connecting South Changshan Island and North Changshan Island, but North Changshan Island is slightly smaller, with mountainous and hilly terrain accounting for most of it, and the land area available for cultivation and growing grains is also smaller. North and South Changshan Islands are

Although the islands in the north are also habitable, their developable area is much smaller.

The fleet stayed at Changshan Island for about two hours before continuing to head north. Although the islands to the north of Changshan Island are also habitable, their area is much smaller. Before dark that day, the fleet arrived at Miao Island

The northernmost Beihuangcheng Island of the archipelago. This island covers an area of ​​less than three square kilometers and is only a small area in the sea. More than 20 nautical miles further north from here is Laotieshan, the southernmost tip of the Liaodong Peninsula. Wang Tom

There was no rush to go to the Liaodong Peninsula overnight, and he ordered to camp on Beihuangcheng Island for one night and set off again after dawn tomorrow.

Early the next morning, after breakfast, the fleet officers broke camp and set sail, continuing to move north. The sea area from Beihuangcheng Island to Laotieshan is the junction of the Yellow Sea and the Bohai Sea, and the waves of the two seas meet here, so the sea area here is

The sea conditions are also very dangerous. However, when viewed from the sea level, because the water of the Yellow Sea is bluer and the water of the Bohai Sea is yellower, a clear dividing line of water flow is formed here, which can be regarded as a rare maritime spectacle. Almost all the officers and soldiers of the fleet are

Coming from the south, most people have never seen such a scene, and they were all amazed by it for a while.

"Chief, the place that emerges from the sea in front of us is Lao Tieshan!"

The person who reported this information to Wang Tom was Sun Bing, the navigator on the flagship. He used to serve in the Fuzhou Guard Army in Liaodong. Later, the Liaodong area was encroached and annexed by the Hou Jin Dynasty, and many places were lost. In order to save his life, Sun Bing fled with his family across the sea to Deng.

Later, in the early days of the Denglai Rebellion, the Liao and Shandong people killed each other indiscriminately. Sun Bing saw the opportunity early and took his family to escape from Dengzhou City, the center of the chaos, and fled all the way south to Huai'an Prefecture. He took refuge in Haizhou and recruited local recruits.

The Zhejiang maritime merchants who immigrated traveled all the way to Hainan Island under the rule of Haihan.

Because he was born in the Northeast and had military experience, he was naturally selected to join the army by the Ministry of National Defense who wanted to make a career in the Northeast. He was later assigned to the Navy. After a year of training, he was relatively familiar with it.

Due to the situation near the Liaodong Peninsula, he was temporarily designated as the navigator and went north with the fleet to Shandong. This time Wang Tom led the team to inspect the Bohai Strait, so he naturally took him with him. Of course, if we want to discuss this alone

Familiar with the conditions in the sea, Sun Changmi, who once studied at Dalian Maritime University, may be more suitable to serve as a navigator. However, he has other important matters on Zhifu Island now, so following the fleet on this trip is a bit overkill.

, so in the end Wang Tom chose Sun Bing, a native of Northeast China, to complete the job.

"Lao Tieshan..." Wang Tom watched the outline of the land appearing on the sea level gradually become clearer, but he was thinking about another thing in his mind.

According to the historical process, Hou Jin should have captured the Jinzhou Guard at the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula last year. It is very likely that observation posts were also deployed on the coast here to respond to the Ming Dynasty Navy's cross-sea operations from the Denglai area.

Provide a timely response. And if the arrival of the Haihan fleet is discovered by the Hou Jin Army, there is indeed the possibility of exposing its strength in advance.

However, the Haihan Ministry of National Defense believes that if Hou Jin can be given the illusion that Ming Dynasty is going to counterattack the Liaodong Peninsula, then Hou Jin may focus part of his attention on the Liaodong Peninsula, which can slightly reduce the military pressure on Ming Dynasty in the direction of Shanhaiguan. Therefore.

Regarding this reconnaissance operation, Wang Tom had no intention of deliberately hiding his tracks - of course, if a fleet of this size appeared near the coast, anyone who was not blind would definitely notice it. If Hou Jin was at the height of Laotieshan,

Sentries were set up everywhere, so the theory should have noticed the abnormal situation at sea.

"Sun Bing, when you came out of Liaodong, did you ever think you would come back one day?" Wang Tom asked with interest.

Sun Bing responded: "Reporting to the commander, I thought about taking a humble position, but at that time I never imagined that I would come back in glory as a navy and Han army!"

"Then if we have to fight with the Hou Jin people, are you still afraid?" Wang Tom asked with a smile.

Sun Bing glared and said: "Chief, I fled Liaodong because I couldn't bear the death of my family in the war, not because I was greedy for life and afraid of death! Now that our Haihan army is approaching, the Jin barbarians will not be able to surrender in the future. There is nothing good about it."

Scared!"

Wang Tom felt a little unhappy when he heard what he said was a bit slippery: "Then what if Hou Jin doesn't take the initiative to surrender?"

Sun Bing responded: "Then don't blame our Haihan army for being rude! Sun Bing is not talented and is willing to fight to the end for the Executive Committee!"

After hearing his expression of loyalty, Wang Tom's face brightened slightly and he said: "Sooner or later, the grievances between these Northeastern wild boar skins and us Han people must be settled. When the army marches into Liaodong, it will be a good opportunity for you Northeastern soldiers to make meritorious deeds. At that time,

Be good and perform well, maybe after conquering Liaodong, you will be able to become a high official and honor your ancestors!"

Sun Bing quickly stood at attention, saluted with a military salute, and said loudly: "Thank you for the heads up!"

As they spoke, the fleet was getting closer and closer to the coast of Laotieshan, and they could already clearly see the rugged rock cliffs on the seaside. On one of the highlands, a line of black smoke was rising from the trees.
Chapter completed!