The waters in the bay are very wide. The depth of the coalition formation and the warships in the rear have turned to the southwest and retreated in the direction of the exit of Saigon Bay.

The treasure ships of the Ming army and the Monchong battleships formed two columns, shuttling through the enemy's large array; The two armies maintained the same course, and the difference in speed was not large. Two long dragon-like white smoke clearly distinguished the Ming army's fleet.

The sound of artillery on the surface of the water almost never stopped, and warships near and far were firing their cannons one after another. The clear sea and sky seem to be shrouded in thunder. The wind was mixed with the noise of drums and trumpets and human voices.

Most of the warships of the coalition army were evading the attack of the Ming army; Therefore, where the shelling took place, most of the Ming troops took the initiative to move closer. As a result, most of the Ming warships chose to fire their guns on the port side, which was roughly upwind of the enemy ships, and the billowing gunpowder smoke would blow the enemy ships and affect the opponent's line of sight.

Under the ship of the coach Chen Xuan, the noise in the cabin suddenly decreased. The sergeants checked the fire in their hands and waited with bated breath and full attention.

One of the generals held on to the wall of the ship with his hands, bent down and leaned his face next to the wooden hole, staring intently at the enemy ship that slowly appeared outside. Without looking back, he raised his arm and said, "Steady...... Ready, point! ”

The smell of gunpowder smoke in the cabin suddenly pungent the nose, and the primer wire made a "squeak" sound. After a while, a deafening roar of cannon fired. The hull of the ship shook, and the soldiers who were squatting on the ground and covering their ears were staggered. The "Tian" Hanwang cannon, which weighed three or four thousand catties, was pulled by a huge recoil force that made the iron chain "bang" loudly, and the heavy wooden floor was almost torn. Smoke hung over the port side, and it was white.

A shout came from the square wooden hole above: "Immediately reload the medicine!" ”

"Sweep the sparks, charge them now." The military commander in the cabin repeated. He was not only responding to the military orders from above, but also ordering the soldiers around him.

The salvo of multiple heavy guns had a recoil force, and even slightly changed the course of the treasure ship in an instant, but the treasure ship was still approaching in a diagonal line against the enemy ship.

The military general on the deck raised his Yanling sword, pointed to the port side, and shouted: "Release!" ”

A row of spring cold heavy guns on the gunwald holes "crackled" and exploded, and a cloud of white smoke rushed out of the ship's side. There were also a few cannon shots, which were fired from the guns on the deck.

The Ming sergeants, dressed in cyan naval uniforms and wide-brimmed iron hats, quickly shouldered their firearms and left the side of the ship. The second row of neatly dressed and armored soldiers walked behind the perforation in unison, and together they flattened the heavy spring cold guns and put them on the perforation.

After a few rounds of buckshot flying wildly, the giant ship gradually sailed away from the nearby enemy ship. As the white smoke cleared, one could see that the sampan was a mess, its canvas full of small holes, and its hull faintly tilted.

To the east of the enemy ship, another ship was slowly sinking on the surface of the water, burning with flames and smoke billowing from the water.

There are many heads dotted on the sea, all of them are Manja and Zhenla people who have jumped into the water, and the air is full of shouts for help. Most of the enemy pawns had no armor and survived, and those armored generals with status may have sunk into the sea like stones.

In the official hall on the second floor above the deck, a civilian official was writing a book and describing the situation of the naval battle on the spot. There are two lines at the beginning of his article: At the beginning of October 27, the fourth year of Wu De, Sai Kung Bay, the northeast breeze is dawning, the waves are low, and the sky is sunny.

The civil servant buried himself in writing for a while, and suddenly the floor shook violently again, the hull of the ship was visibly shaking, and the roaring sound of cannon was dizzying. There was a "commotion" around, and the small pieces of debris in the wooden house were bumping everywhere. The inkstone on the table jumped a few times, then slid off the edge. The civil servant was quick-eyed, hurriedly reached out and pressed the inkstone, and then picked up a rag and hurriedly cleaned the ink on the wooden table.

The uppermost floor of the ship building is the command building, and the red-robed officer standing behind the railing is none other than the naval commander Chen Xuan.

Chen Xuan is not like his guard commander Tang Jing, who can take the lead and fight with the soldiers; Chen Xuan actually can't even hold the helm. He didn't wear military uniforms and armor, he still wore official uniforms, and he looked like a stable official.

Chen Xuan, who is more than forty years old, is quite well maintained, and her skin is very smooth. His big face is very square, his figure is tall, burly, wide and fat, and the wide belt around his waist makes his stomach seem to be a little erect. When Emperor Taizu was there, he was still quite brave and hardworking, and he was also quite talented, and he was promoted to a high-ranking official; After Taizu's death, he began to relax himself and prepare to enjoy his happiness, but unexpectedly, the reputation he had accumulated before soon fell to the bottom.

Chen Xuan plans to make a good contribution this time, but he has been in a high position for many years, and his living habits of fine clothes and food will not be changed for a while. His style is still the same. When the smoke of artillery reached the command building, Chen Xuan took out a handkerchief and gently covered his mouth and nose.

Pampered and fond of enjoyment, there must be a few subordinates around to pat the beard and slip the horse, so as to stay mentally happy at any time. Chen Xuan also hasn't gotten rid of this problem.

The generals watched the landscape of the sea for a while, and some people began to chatter: "The handsome man is like a god, and it is really Kong Ming who is alive." The prestige of this battle, the reputation of the marshal will resound all over the world. ”

Chen Xuan pretended to be humble and said: "If you just wait here, the thief army may not be fooled." Zhu Zhen, the deputy general of the left, did a good job on the side of the Tongnai River, and a few thousand people were stunned to make a battle of 20,000 people. The thieves thought that our men and horses had come ashore, otherwise how would they have the courage to come up and send them to death? ”

Someone immediately chimed in: "I heard that General Zhu has built dozens of military camps, and he has made a big show in the camps. The best thing is to use some medicine to repel mosquitoes, and make the area around the barracks smoky, making it difficult for the enemy to find out what is true. The mosquito smoke was real mosquito smoke, and the locals knew it as soon as they smelled it, so the thief would no longer be suspicious. ”

The general who praised Chen Xuan just now hurriedly said: "It's still because the commander is properly deployed, and he has a clever plan." He paused and lowered his voice again, and whispered, "The last general heard that Zhu Zhen was originally in charge of Caoyun, and he had never fought a decent battle at all. ”

Several other people immediately echoed with interest: "It still depends on Chen Dashuai to strategize." ”

Chen Xuan thought for a while and said: "This battle was successful, Zhu Zhen has made great contributions, and no one can say that it is not." ”

Everyone immediately changed their tunes and began to praise Chen Dashuai's morality, who is open-minded and not greedy for merit.

Chen Xuan continued: "The decision-making and deployment are agreed upon by the prince and the Chinese army, and of course the commander does not dare to be greedy for great achievements. ”

This made people who intended to compliment him very embarrassed, but Chen Xuan was in this position, just trying to be happy, and he didn't need to pay attention to everyone's intentions. How to say it well, that's someone else's business.

In the middle of the discussion, suddenly the cannon roared, and the shipbuilding shook. Only then did the crowd stop talking.

After the heavy artillery was fired, there was another crackling of fire. However, with the loading speed of the Hanwang cannon, the terrifying battle just now will not appear again for a while.

Chen Xuan showed a self-deprecating demeanor again, and said: "The key is that the saint is wise and martial, and ordinary people really don't dare to use this handsome." ”

Now everyone has nothing to say, and they can't say that the emperor is not. However, the general who had touted the most before found another way to say: "Chen Dashuai talked and laughed, and the tree was wiped out, which is really the style of a famous general of the Ming Dynasty." ”

"Haha!" Chen Xuan finally laughed heartily. He stood with his head up, looking at the grand battlefield with white smoke billowing and cannon rumbling, it was with high spirits and ambition that he had not been able to live so happily for many years.

The most crucial step in the battle of Saigon on the sea is to lead the enemy into the ambush range in the early stage; After the plan succeeded, the battle itself was not much more difficult.

Chen Xuan let out a long breath, turned his head to feel the cool sea breeze, and said, "This monsoon is also very appropriate, God help Daming." ”

Everyone happily echoed the sentiments.

The naval battle lasted a very long time. At the beginning, the officers and troops attacked with the wind, and the progress was quite fast; Later, when the remaining ships of the enemy army turned to retreat, the progress of the official pursuit became slower and slower. Because each other is a tailwind, the treasure ships of the officers and soldiers are very heavy, and the speed does not necessarily have any advantage.

The fleet had already chased out of Saigon Bay and passed through the mouth of the Dong Nai River. The two armies fought along the waters of the coastline to the mouth of the Mekong River, and the sun was already approaching sea level.

At this time, the remaining enemy forces were still fleeing to the south. Of course, they didn't care about the darkness, and they were bent on getting rid of the officer fleet.

Chen Xuan ordered the whole army to stop the pursuit and end the naval battle. The treasure ship of the Chinese army began to sing gold, and several light-colored flags were hung on the ropes on the ship's tower. The nearby warships received the message from the Chinese army and also signaled a cease-service.

Then the flotilla began to change direction one after another, and each team changed course to the Mekong estuary and the Qianjiang estuary according to the strategy of the previous deployment.

Chen Xuan turned his head and asked the soldiers around him: "Have you sent ships to the two estuaries to stand by?" If there are no lights, we won't be able to find a place when it's dark. ”

A subordinate hugged his fists and said: "Back to the commander, it has been done according to the military order." ”

The generals who previously touted Chen Xuan began to oppose and dissuade Chen Xuan. When you say nice things, you don't have to bear any consequences anyway, but when you really do something, they will also have their own opinions.

A military general admonished: "We are not familiar with the depth of the water of the Mekong River and the Qianjiang River, so we rush to the night for fear of encountering shallow places and damaging the boats." ”

Chen Xuan glared and said, "So what? Why don't we rush overnight, and dare to wait for the news of the naval battle to reach the bandit army camp on the road? If you fight a war, you will lose money, and this is not a reason to neglect fighters. ”

The military general said: "Even if the officers and soldiers rush overnight, it may be too late." ”

Chen Xuan snorted and said, "Did you see any horses on the thief ship?" If they can't find the horses in a hurry, they hurried on foot to report the news, fearing that they might not be as fast as our boat. Order all units of the whole army to deploy in advance, and immediately dispatch, without mistakes, and those who violate the order will be beheaded! ”

The generals had no choice but to clench their fists and say: "The last general will wait for the order." ”