"I'll introduce you, Drake."

In the Outer Harbour Authority's temporary office as Nelson's patrol commander, Nelson introduced Lorraine to the operation's collaborators.

"William. Colonel Cornwallis, my dear friend, captain of the HMS Steppe Lion cruiser. William had already received orders from the Home Fleet, so Jazz had withdrawn him from the Gulf of Mexico ahead of schedule to reinforce the Fleet with his last patrol mission in the New World. ”

Lorraine to William. Cornwallis nodded in acknowledgment.

Cuthbert. Lieutenant Colonel Collingwood, you're old acquaintances. He was temporarily assigned to the HMS Unicorn destroyer as commander this time, but you can rest assured, Jazz authorized him to bring all the crew of the Wasp over, even if it is a new ship, there will be no problems with running-in. ”

As Nelson had said, Lorraine and Collingwood were old acquaintances, and Lorraine congratulated him on his promotion.

Collingwood smiled modestly and said that his official formation was still on the Wasp, and that he would return the one-horned ** at the end of this operation.

"Oliver. Major Spencer, commander of a regimental battalion in Jamaica, and a confidant of Major General Darling. This time, he led four reinforced companies to expand the territory of Great Britain, and was the deputy selected by Major General Darling, who had a wealth of experience and top-notch adaptability. ”

Nelson thought for a moment, then added, "Major Spencer was a perfect gentleman and a devout Puritan, and we got along very well. ”

The meaning of this sentence is to say that Oliver. Spencer by John. Lecset was much more along, Nelson had already dealt with the issue of land and sea connections, and Operation Lanhai would not be like Operation Halloween, where the services would fight each other.

Lorraine deliberately gave Major Spencer a second look.

A thin, clean middle-aged man, wearing a bright red military uniform unique to the British Army, is meticulous in the details of his clothing.

The British officer's uniforms are limited to the core elements and then handed over to the officers to raise and make their own models, and there is no unified procurement and distribution.

So a meticulous and decent clean military uniform indicates at least a couple of things.

Major Spencer had a good traditional education.

His family is very good.

He is a serious person and has a sense of identity with his current work.

That's all good news.

Lorraine smiled and stretched out her hand: "Lorraine. Arnason. Drake, President of the Drake Chamber of Commerce in Southampton and Chairman of Kingston Drake Caribbean Chapter, is pleased to meet you. ”

Major Spencer? Surprised for a moment: "You are the loose boss in Chuck's mouth who is either fighting or exploring?" So young? ”

Lorraine too? Strange: "Could it be that the Major happens to be familiar with my president?" ”

"The Spencers and the Parker family have a long-standing friendship, we have known each other since we were three years old, and we were classmates before college."

"That's really...... What a coincidence. ”

After a brief greeting, the meeting was directly adjusted to a combat meeting.

It was Nelson's habit.

This ostensibly obsessed with career is actually a workaholic, and although he is not the kind of outlier who never leaves his work, like Lorraine, he can't stand idleness before everything is decided.

He spread out the chart.

"Why did you wait for Drake to come and call this meeting?" Nelson opened with a self-made question, "because his team can be entrusted with a heavy responsibility." ”

"Drake is the warrior raised by the hereditary baron of Tavistock, the top warrior in England, and the rare champion of the Plymouth Naval Academy in a century."

"I worked with Cuthbert on Operation Halloween, and he and his team played a central role in beaching, luring enemies, ambushing, and finally the final battle at sea."

"Please don't think of him as an ordinary mercenary, he is a trustworthy companion on both sea and land, and even why Sir would agree to the operation at sea? It's also largely due to the fact that I have Drake's full support. ”

"It's the same this time."

Nelson shakes off the baton? The focus is on the San Juan estuary.

"In accordance with the course of action laid down by Major General Dahrin, we will land from the narrow mouth of the San Juan River? Tracing the origin to the west. ”

"The San Juan River is the only waterway connecting Lake Nicaragua to the Caribbean Sea? It is also the most realistic and smooth passage through the jungle. The shallowest water depth is 5 meters during the wet season, and the average is 7 meters? It can accommodate large ships to navigate. ”

"But there is a Spaniard-controlled area, in the wet season? Their navy will be fortified in the river channel? We don't have a chance to raid. ”

"It's the dry season, the shallowest section of the water depth is less than 2 meters, the average water depth is less than 3 meters, and our warships can't get in? The Spanish ships could not get in. That's our chance. ”

"We're going to take an assault boat to trace the source? For this reason, the ships of the Lanhai Fleet are specially equipped with ten-meter-long boats and detachable masts to allow the wind to assist us against the current. ”

"The crew of the big boat is 70 people, and six is 420 people? Plus the eight dinghys that Drake brought, 20 people each? This means that we can transport up to 580 people. ”

"And the total number of the landing force was 4 reinforced companies, 480 infantry, 40 artillery, 8 light artillery? More than enough capacity! ”

Lorraine didn't hear anything more than enough in Nelson's words.

The march is not a matter of mathematics.

Hundreds of kilometers of travel? The harsh environment of the rainforest? Provisions, medicines, baggage, and marines who are good at handling ships must be prepared, and the actual capacity occupied will never be less than the needs of the landing force.

This left Lorraine puzzled.

With Nelson's quality, even if he is carried away by fame and fortune, he will not be able to understand this kind of hidden account floating on the surface, in this case, why can he still be so sure?

Lorraine frowned and knocked on the table: "How to solve the problem of supplies and rest along the way?" ”

Nelson smiled.

"I have consulted with Major Spencer on this point. The four companies assigned to the operation were the elite of the Jamaican garrison, hard-working and familiar with the rainforest. We would have two companies march along the riverbank, taking turns to keep the soldiers physically and mentally strong. ”

Lorraine suddenly realized.

Half of the people marching by land was a good way to deal with capacity, and if it wasn't the best way, they couldn't get a lot of boats into San Juan during the dry season.

Doing such a thing in the Spaniard-controlled area would most likely alert the Spaniards in advance.

But...... From the point of view of actual operations, this kind of plan is still too fragile......

Is there any way to increase capacity and firepower without being obtrusive?

Lorraine's fingers drew lines along the winding course of San Juan, muttering to herself.

"Will the indigenous fishermen still fish during the dry season?"

Nelson was stunned for a moment: "You plan to rob the natives' fishing boats?" ”

Lorraine shook his head with a smile: "Even if we ignore the uncertainty of the type of ship being robbed, the empty ship will not help us much, it can only be used as a means of transportation, and it will increase our demand for sailors." ”

"I mean, let my boat disguise itself as a fishing boat and get in first."

"Your ship?"

"Yes." Lorraine nodded, "I grabbed some medium-sized dhow in Bimini, all of them old commercial ships. They are of little use in offshore conversions, but they are just right in the San Juan River. “

"As long as they are equipped with enough indigenous fishermen to enter the estuary before us, they should not attract the attention of the Spaniards."

Nelson's eyes lit up: "You mean, we split up with the supplies and then converge in the river?" ”

Lorraine nodded slightly.

"How long will it take? And how to solve it by reliable indigenous fishermen! ”

"It's not far from Port Royal. From arranging the boats, selecting people, to distributing supplies, until the boats are sent to the estuary, it will not take more than two weeks at most. As for the candidates, one of my seafarers happens to be the son-in-law of a Miskito fisherman, who can take care of this. ”

"The son-in-law of the Miskitos?" Nelson was stunned.

"It's the son-in-law of the Miskitos, a Viking." Lorraine laughed inexplicably, "And coincidentally, the Miskito people don't speak English, but almost everyone knows Spanish." ”