Chapter 2078

Although not much valuable information was obtained from Kim Sang-heon, the arrangement of a supply port in Jeju Island was basically finalized through this meeting, and it was not in vain. At this time, the Taedong River base received Sanya's

Seven or eight days have passed since the notification, and the staff department has also formulated a rough action plan. After Wang Tom's approval, the ship can be arranged to set off.

Chen Yixin also sent a telegram from Lushun, informing him of the inspection mission in the waters near Kyushu, Japan. However, his mission at that time was not to prepare for war, so he generally just took a quick look at the local waters.

I can’t say how in-depth my understanding is.

However, Chen Yixin specifically pointed out in the telegram that there were many Japanese pirate armed forces entrenched on the Goto Islands west of Kyushu back then. Times have changed, and whether these Japanese pirate armed forces are still operating in this sea area is something that needs attention.

Considering that the operation at this stage is only for the purpose of reconnaissance, Wang Tom does not plan to send an organized armed fleet to the local area. Instead, he will use light reconnaissance ships as the main force and only send a few exploration-class light warships as support.

This configuration can also make the North Koreans feel more at ease. After all, the Haihan Navy has not deployed in large numbers, so the possibility of causing trouble on Jeju Island is low.

This reconnaissance operation did not just involve the navy, Qian Tiandun's special operations group also participated. This is not because Wang Tom kindly wanted to give a share of the credit to Qian Tiandun's men, but because the special operations group included Gao Qiaonan.

Several Japanese officers who joined the army in the early days, such as the ones represented, can play a role in such reconnaissance missions.

These Japanese officers were all captured in the attack on Port Victory. They were basically down-and-out samurai from poor family backgrounds who had drifted overseas. They were able to be selected as soldiers by the military mainly because they had certain qualities.

He has fighting ability, and also has the willingness to serve Haihan as his main body and to be loyal to Haihan.

The implementation proved that the military's decision at that time was correct. It was among these prisoners of war who defected to Haihan that outstanding officers like Takahashi Minami emerged, who made great contributions to the development and growth of Haihan.

Today, there is no longer any problem with the origins of Takahashi Minami and others. The language and living habits they use in daily life have been completely Haihanized. However, their Japanese origins have been greatly influenced by the Haihan Army's many years of overseas campaigns.

It rarely works, so many people don't even know that they are naturalized Japanese people.

Qian Tiandun did not let Takahashi Minami go out personally, but sent Amakusa Shiro, who is currently serving in the special operations group staff department, to carry out this task. When Chen Yixin led the team to reconnoiter the Kitakyushu area, Amakusa Shiro was also in the team.

Amakusa Shiro himself was born in Kyushu, so his understanding of the local environment was unparalleled among the Kaihan Army, and he was perfectly suited to carry out this mission.

As for the Navy, Major Yuan Zhi, who is in charge of maritime reconnaissance operations of the Northern Fleet, serves as the commander. Although Major Yuan is not well-known in the military, he has participated in many combat operations. From 1634 Haihan

Since the army's attack on Zhoushan, Yuan Zhi has basically participated in almost all military operations carried out by the navy on the northern coast of the Ming Dynasty. The reason why he is not famous is simply because the reconnaissance missions he is engaged in rarely have the same prominence as the combat troops.

His military exploits have little chance of attracting public attention.

But for the navy, the reconnaissance link during combat is indispensable, and the risk of performing such tasks in an unfamiliar environment is no lower than on a frontal battlefield. Moreover, in order to maintain a high speed, the reconnaissance sailing ship will have almost no equipment on board.

Heavy weapons such as naval guns and hull armor, and only individual weapons such as muskets are used for last-minute self-defense. If you encounter an enemy at sea, you will generally not seek to engage in combat, but can only actively evacuate to protect yourself.

The reconnaissance ship currently used by the Navy is a sailfish-class light sailing ship with a displacement of less than 100 tons. This light sailing ship is specially used to perform fast shipping and reconnaissance missions. It was developed by the maritime department as early as 1628. After it was officially put into service, it was based on

Based on the Navy's feedback, three modifications were made based on the prototype ship.

Today, the Sailfish-class C-type light sailing ship in service in the Northern Fleet is also the latest improved model, with a maximum speed of more than fifteen knots. This type of sailing ship has some limitations in terms of ship materials, structure and manufacturing technology.

Due to special technical requirements, it can only be built at the Shengli Port Shipyard in Sanya, so the number currently in service is extremely limited. Since the Northern Fleet is in a war zone and needs to perform more combat missions on a daily basis, it has given priority to this performance.

A new, more powerful model of sailboat.

During last year's battle with the Qing army, this kind of sailfish reconnaissance ship was dispatched several times, deep into the Yalu River to detect the enemy's situation. In the later stages of the war, it was also used as a logistics support ship to transport the wounded. The most recent dispatch was two months ago

Previously, the Marine Corps entered the Qing-occupied areas to search for the Musketeers, and the Sailfish reconnaissance ship also played an indispensable role in this mission.

After carefully reviewing the combat plan submitted by the staff department, Wang Tom finally approved a small fleet consisting of two swordfish-class reconnaissance ships, two exploration-class warships, and two comprehensive supply ships to go south to carry out this reconnaissance mission.

The reconnaissance fleet is led by Yuan Zhi and Amakusa Shiro as the chief and deputy commanders respectively. The fleet carries a set of radio equipment to maintain communication with the Datong River base.

Since this fleet will be temporarily stationed in Jeju Island during its mission, the North Korean military also sent a senior military attache to participate in the operation in order to properly arrange the logistics support affairs of Haehan's small fleet in Jeju Island. Of course,

By the way, you can also monitor the actions of Haihan's fleet nearby to see if there is any irregularity, and at the same time find out what kind of methods Haihan wants to take against Japan.

The military attachés sent by the North Korean military were also of a low rank. This officer named Shen Xueyi was a Habayashi Guard general with an official rank of 2nd grade. He was the son of the current military officer Shen Jingzhen. Shen Xueyi also participated in a battle with the Qing army last year.

war, and had been fighting with the Haihan Army at the Datong River Base for a while, so he was relatively familiar with the garrison generals at the Datong River Base.

Shen Xueyi rushed to the Datong River base to rendezvous and informed the Haihan military that it had received permission from the king to temporarily borrow the port and was willing to take the initiative to bear half of the supply costs.

Such a statement can be regarded as quite informed. Not only did it provide ports and supplies to Haehan's fleet, but it also took the initiative to bear half of the costs. Making such a statement is probably because Kim Sang-heon was worried that Haehan was not satisfied with his previous attitude.

This was provided as compensation. Of course, Kim Sang-hyun did not need to worry about local supplies, nor did he need to use his own pocket to fill the hole. After a decree was sent from Seoul, local officials could only find ways to deal with the related expenses on their own.

Of course, Wang Tom has nothing to fault about this. The Koreans are unwilling to take the initiative to provoke Japan for various reasons, and Haihan cannot force them. But as long as Haihan's requirements can be met in terms of logistical support, it can be considered as a deal.

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One day in late March, this reconnaissance fleet slowly left the dock of the Datong River base and sailed south along the river bank to the mission area.

It was not until after departure that Shen Xueyi was allowed to look at the chart used for this mission, on which the rough route and area of ​​action had been marked with a red marker.

"Because the higher authorities have extremely high confidentiality requirements for this operation, I did not show you the relevant march route map and action plan before departure. I hope General Shen will not be surprised." Yuan Zhi spread out the chart and asked Shen Xueyi.

Explain the previous arrangements.

Shen Xueyi said hurriedly: "This operation must be of great importance, that's why we have this request. I should cooperate. General Yuan, don't be polite."

Shen Xueyi looked at the chart carefully and realized that the target area of ​​the Haihan Army's trip was near Kitakyushu, Japan. As a senior officer, he was no stranger to this area. He immediately asked: "Does your army want to attack Hirado or Nagasaki?"

Saki surgery?"

Yuan Zhi shook his head and said: "We have no such plan yet. We are just going to reconnoiter the situation in that sea area this time. As for the subsequent plans, that is something to be considered by the higher-ups."

Shen Xueyi thought that you have all started to send ships there to survey the terrain and environment. This can't be just to send merchant ships there to do business, right? He knows that Nagasaki and Hirado are the only two trading ports in Japan that are open to foreign merchants.

, if a war breaks out in these two ports, Japan's foreign trade will be immediately interrupted. I don't know how they provoked the Haihan people there, but they actually made Haihan plan to send troops to solve the problem. I'm afraid they will suffer a lot.

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Yuan Zhi asked rhetorically: "Does General Shen know anything about this area?"

Shen Xueyi said: "I have never been to Japan. Some of the things I know are from hearsay, but there is nothing special."

Before Shen Xueyi set out, his father, Shen Jingzhen, warned him to keep a low profile in front of the Haihan people. He also kept this in mind and was very cautious when dealing with Yuan Zhi and Amakusa Shiro.

Yuan Zhi originally didn't have much hope for Shen Xueyi, but he just wanted to give it a try with the idea of ​​playing with jujube and without jujube. If he really wants to know the local area, I'm afraid Amakusa Shiro, who was born in Kyushu, has more say.

In the eyes of Shen Xueyi, except for his name, Shiro Amakusa is completely different from the Japanese in his impression. He is obviously a typical Haihan talent. But Shen Xueyi also realized that the reason why Shiro Amakusa participated in this operation was probably mainly

Because he is of Japanese descent, he can provide more information during the operation.

However, Amakusa Shiro is also a man of few words and did not make any remarks at the moment. For him, his career and family are now in Haihan, and he has not been back to his hometown for more than ten years, and there is not much time there.

Let him remember what happened for so many years.

If it weren't for the requirements of this mission, Amakusa Shiro would actually be reluctant to mention his Japanese origin. He prefers his current identity as a Haihan officer who is respected wherever he goes, rather than the original one.

A Japanese samurai who was so destitute that he could only live overseas as a pirate. He even wanted to change his name at one time and use a Han surname to mark his identity, but Minami Takahashi told him that such a change would not make much sense.

, no matter whether they use Japanese surnames or Han surnames, they are all Hai-Han nationals now, and the important thing is nationality rather than surname.

Although Amakusa Shiro did not completely agree with Takahashi Minami's opinion, he finally gave up the plan to change his name and gave his children the surname Amakusa. But if he was asked to return to Japan and restore his previous identity, he would never do it.

He would accept it, so when faced with topics about Japan, he just listened quietly and did not join in the discussion.

Shen Xueyi asked: "It is said that the two light sailing ships dispatched this time are extremely fast, so why don't we take those two ships and rush to Jeju Island as soon as possible, so that we can squeeze in more time to make arrangements before the action."

Yuan Zhi smiled and said: "General Shen has never been on a swordfish sailboat, that's why he asked this question. In fact, the reason is very simple, that is, the riding experience on that sailboat is not very good."

In order to pursue speed, one of the main technical measures taken by the Sailfish-class light sailing ship is to reduce the total weight of the ship by reducing various non-essential facilities on the ship. In addition to the cancellation of all heavy weapons such as naval guns, there are also some living facilities.

All are simplified to the greatest extent, and a long journey at sea on a sailfish sailboat is not a pleasant journey.

So on the way south, several senior officers took the exploration-class warship. At least there was room on the ship for them to sit down for meetings, lie down and rest. The voyage was relatively smoother, so they could save a little money on the way.

physical strength.

According to the action plan, they will stay for about two days to rest after arriving in Jeju Island, and then sail eastward to the Kyushu region before setting off again. During the operation, they will complete the mission to the Goto Islands, Kitakyushu, Hirado Island, Iki Island, and Tsushima

Maritime reconnaissance of the large area of ​​​​the island, especially the two trading ports of Hirado and Nagasaki, will be the key target of this reconnaissance operation.

Of course, if it is just maritime reconnaissance, it may be difficult to confirm the current status of the Eighteen Shiba Yu Party in the Hirado Domain. Therefore, if we can find a suitable opportunity, we may send people ashore to enter the area to collect first-hand intelligence. It is suitable for execution.

The only candidate for this task is Amakusa Shiro.

Three days later, the horizon of Jeju Island appeared in the sight of the lookout soldiers. The outline of Mount Halla on the island was very conspicuous, and it was easy to confirm that this place was Jeju Island from a distance.

However, the supply port requested by Tom Wang must be on the south side of the island, so that it can be closer to the area where the reconnaissance will be carried out later. Therefore, the fleet has to continue south around the island to reach the temporary supply port provided by North Korea.
Chapter completed!