Yang Yandi, commander of the Ming Army's Combined Naval Division, climbed the ramp of the battleship Lingwei and came to the deck of the flagship.

The atmosphere on the battleship was relaxed, and the victory in the first battle relieved the soldiers of a lot of psychological burdens.

The open toilet in the bow was smoky, and about 20 sailors were smoking. Adjacent to the war zone, the ship's fireworks control is very strict, and that is the only smoking area on the ship, and those who are not on duty can take turns to go there after permission.

The Marine Corps soldier on duty stood up with his gun and saluted, and Yang Yandi raised his right hand to return the salute. The Federal Army had a profound influence on the Ming Army in joint operations, including weapons, military salutes, and military systems.

Yang Yandi was one of the highest-ranking generals in the naval division of the Ming Army in Guangdong, and according to the unwritten rules of the Federation and Hainan, the standard of the navy's reception for him was about the rank of brigadier general. The Guardian Order has never established a standard for the correspondence between the federal military rank and the rank of the Ming officer, and these things have been explored by the two armies themselves in the perennial joint operations.

The officer on duty led Yang Yandi down the wooden ladder to the main gun deck, and the orderly command cabin was located at the stern of the ship.

Across the large board room of the fleet, which spans both sides, is the orderly bedroom. Space on board was precious, and the orderly hammocks were located between the two 24-pounder guns, and the furniture, including the beds, had to be removed during the war.

The office was at the very end of the battleship, Yang Yandi pushed the door in, just as he imagined, the glass porthole was wide open, the light came in, and the cabin was bright, much better than the conference room.

On the desk and on the wall there is a large-scale map of Canton Prefecture, the commander of the 2nd Division, Ludwig. Filhoff, Fleet Commander Grenville. Collingwood, two brigade commanders, several battleship captains, and the fleet staff gathered around the large orderly desk, discussing the battle plan.

The officers did not wear military caps, and Yang Yandi also took off his military caps and clamped them under his armpits.

Collingwood: "According to the reconnaissance report, the Tatars have built a large number of shore fortifications at Humen, but not all of them have been completed, and judging from the scale of the construction site, it will be a big trouble if it is completed. ”

Order: "And now?" ”

Collingwood smiled, "It's not too much of a problem. ”

Filhoff's right index finger focused on the map: "My cavalry is useless in a landing battle, and I suggest starting from Xin'an, and the main force of this division will advance along the land route alone." ”

Orderly: "How much army support does the navy need to enter the Pearl River?" ”

"1 regiment is enough."

"Army?"

Filhoff: "Then I will leave 1 battalion to guard Xin'an County, 1 regiment to move with the battleship, and the other 5 battalions and cavalry to march along the left bank of the Pearl River to Guangzhou." ”

"From Xin'an to Guangzhou, there are many rivers, what should you do with your artillery?"

"Cavalry artillery and 6-pounder infantry guns followed the troops, and heavy artillery companies were transported by flat-bottomed boats."

"Do you disagree?"

Seeing that no one objected, Shou Xuan said: "Then specify the battle plan according to this line of thought, and we will advance by land and water." ”

The officers walked out of the conference room, and some of them knew Yang Yandi, nodded in greeting, and closed the hatch.

"Yandi."

Yang Yandi's boots touched the heels, and Lizheng raised his right hand, "Führer." ”

The order was not mandatory to enforce regulations in the Ming army, but this did not prevent them from studying on their own, and the Führer smiled, "Sit down." ”

poured a glass of wine for Yang Yandi, and said in an orderly manner: "I plan to assign your warships and soldiers to the 2nd Division that is advancing along the land route, is there a problem?" ”

"No, Führer."

"Good." Shou Xian played with the pencil in his hand, "I came to you mainly to affirm military discipline." You are not pirates, but Chinese government troops. ”

"Yes, Führer."

"Therefore, first, it is absolutely forbidden to slaughter cities and villages indiscriminately;

Second, it is possible to seize the spoils of war in the occupied cities, but it is forbidden to shoot indiscriminately, you are a regular army, even if it is a robbery, the regular army should be organized and disciplined;

Thirdly, mass indiscriminate rape is absolutely prohibited, and soldiers can get women, but that is limited to the families of the enemies who resist, understand? ”

Yang Yandi sweated on his forehead, "Führer, the officers and soldiers are all scared, and they finally ......."

Shou Xian interrupted Yang Yandi, "There is no room for bargaining, you go back and tell the officers that if anyone can't control his soldiers, I will definitely punish him." ”

Military discipline is the core issue of the mainland's strategy, and the order guards hope that the Ming army can have the appearance of a king's division, rather than a strange mixture of officers and soldiers, pirates, bandits, and rogues as it is now.

Yang Yandi: "Yes, the head of state ......"

"Okay, what's the problem?"

"I have a question."

"Say."

"Führer, the book says that the soldiers are fast, we occupy Xin'an County, shouldn't we sail straight into the Pearl River? Zheng Fan's fiasco at the city of Nanjing was directly related to their delay under the city of Zhenjiang for too long. ”

Order: "Against the wind and against the current, the Pearl River is not easy to enter, we have to wait for the tide and the right crosswind." ”

"I went to the Pearl River yesterday to investigate the enemy's situation, the Tatars are hurrying to build the Humen Fort, the prisoners confessed, Shang Kexi desperately drew reinforcements from all over Guangzhou, I am worried that the delay is too long, we will repeat the mistakes of Nanjing."

Shou Xuan leaned back in his chair and said easily: "Yandi, we are different from Zheng Fan, we have a strong ground force. When the Goths captured the city of Rome, they used to tell the Romans that the denser the grass grew, the less effort it would take to cut it. Shang Kexi mobilized reinforcements from all over the province, which just saved us the trouble in the future. ”

Yang Yandi stood up from his position, "I understand, Führer, if there is nothing else, I will go back and arrange the army." ”

The commander-in-chief of the Ming Army's naval division left the command cabin, held the teacup in his hand, pushed the door out, and walked to the verandah at the stern.

The fleet was surrounded by hundreds of fishing boats, all of whom were villagers and fishermen from villages on both sides of the Pearl River.

Fresh fish, vegetables, live poultry and eggs were sold to the army, and these fresh ingredients were important materials to ensure the army's combat effectiveness.

Shou Xiang sipped green tea lightly, looked at everything around him with satisfaction, and it was not the time for soldiers to forcibly cut people's hair braids for the time being.

A good reputation allows the people who serve the coalition to gather more and more, and that's a good start.

The expeditionary force used Xin'an County as a logistics base, and the fleet temporarily anchored in the port to reserve supplies.

The 2nd Division sent 1 battalion to take over the defense of the Marine Corps, unloading all cavalry units.

Due to the relocation of the border and the ban on the sea, the north of the county is barren, and Xin'an County originally had 10,000 households, but now only 2 or 3,000 households remain in the hilly areas in the north of the county.

Three chasseur companies supported nearly 1,000 Ming troops to open a cordon to the north and contact the green battalions in Dongguan and Huizhou. In the arsenal of the Green Battalion and the Eight Banners, except for the Hongyi cannon, there was no weapon with a range comparable to the Tuwennan rifled gun, and under the cover of the hunter shooters, the Ming army occupied an absolute advantage in the small-scale engagement, opening a safe passage for the main march of the army.

Three days later, the 5th Regiment of the Army arrived at the city of Dongguan.

The wind direction at sea turned to east-northeast, and the fleet anchored, aiming at Humen.