The Marines conquered several tribes in Palembang and began building fortresses in Palembang while building shipyards to equip captured warships.

More and more merchant ships and warships were captured, and in April the Nanyang detachment led by Wen Bangliang captured twelve merchant ships, along with five warships.

In May, the number of intercepted merchant ships increased to sixteen, but the number of warships captured was only two, and the number of Dutch warships sunk was none.

In June, there was a downward trend, and there were only eleven merchant ships.

This was due to the fact that by June, the Dutch had gathered thirty warships and were looking for troubles in the South Seas for frigates to plunder merchant ships, which, although the frigates had suffered little loss, were seriously disrupted by the speed of their 'operations'.

By October, the total number of merchant ships captured had reached sixty-seven, more efficient than the American fleet. As long as it is still because the passage of the Sunda Strait is blocked, and there are many shipping routes in the Atlantic, the American fleet will have to go around to the east coast if it wants to plunder, and the efficiency is naturally not as high as that of the South Sea detachment.

In addition to the large merchant ships, the small tonnage merchant ships used for offshore transportation in Shandong have also grabbed hundreds, and the tonnage of these hundreds of merchant ships is less than 800 tons.

Shandong's use of merchant ships is thought to be that merchant ships of less than 800 tons are used for offshore transportation, and more than 800 tons are used for ocean transportation.

Not only because it is dangerous for small merchant ships to go to sea, but also because there is a huge gap in the transportation capacity required due to the increasing frequency of trade between the North and the South.

Towards the end of the year, the Nanyang detachment began to prepare for the return of these ships to Shandong.

Because the strength was still too small, the ships that were grabbed were towed back to Palembang. After all, on the way back, it is very likely to be intercepted by the Dutch and the Zheng group.

Therefore, it is safest to concentrate on escorting the next surname back to Shandong.

However, just as the Nanyang detachment was about to escort the fleet back to Shandong, the clippers who were reconnoitring outside came to report that the Dutch had gathered 32 warships and rushed into the Muxi River, and were rushing towards Palembang.

The Musi River, which is the southern river of Sumatra. It originates from the Barisan Mountains, flows roughly from west to east, flows through Palembang and turns northward, and flows into the South China Sea, with a total length of 520 kilometers.

The upper reaches of the Musi River are mostly canyons and waterfalls, and the middle reaches plunge into wide plains, and the riverbed is wide and shallow; The banks below Palembang are full of swamps; The delta is about 390 kilometers wide.

The basin is rich in forests and plains, and ships of 10,000 tons can travel up to 90 kilometers with the tide to Palembang, and the ships of the Nanyang detachment can sail to the major towns along the upper coast.

It was because of these advantages that Wen Bangliang set up his base in Palembang.

The Musi River valley is rich in products and is a plain area, as long as it is developed, it is a rich land.

The Dutch did not know where they learned about the stronghold of the Nanyang detachment, and they actually gathered thirty-two warships and rushed into the Musi River, apparently trying to make a hammer deal and annihilate all the Nanyang detachments in the Musi River.

After Wen Bangliang was shocked, he immediately came up with a desperate plan.

He said to his officers: "Since the Dutch are going to fight this battle, then we will fight with him, and let their navy bury the Mussi River." ”

What the!

All buried?

The crowd was stunned.

"The Musi River has several branches, which are generally Y-shaped, and there are two small branches below, one to the west and one to the north, which merge with the left side of the Y-shaped branch at the mouth of the sea. Since the Dutch have rushed into the Musey, we will dig boats and plug the mouth. First plugged the port in Palembang, and the location of the blockade was so that the batteries in Palembang could reach it, and the Dutch artillery could not reach it, blocking the river to the point that it could only accommodate one warship. Then we took seven warships across the river and put one to fight the other. ”

"When the Dutch fight to a certain extent, they will naturally retreat, how can they all be buried?"

"Immediately take ten merchant ships and five frigates, hide in the river at the fork, and as soon as the Dutch pass, immediately dig the ship and block the mouth, and completely block it." Wen Bangliang continued, "Time is pressing, act now. ”

"Captain, those ships are full of stuff, if they are sinked......"

"I can't bear the child's wolf, and I choose a worthless chisel."

"Yes."

With Wen Bangliang's strategy, Palembang suddenly became busy. Ten merchant ships and five frigates sailed straight out of Palembang and headed for a fork thirty kilometers away.

Thirty miles away, the fork was strictly a small island, which divided the Musi into three rivers, which converged again ten kilometers away.

The other river, which was small but winding westward, was just accessible to merchant ships, and was an excellent hiding place, into which it was impossible for the Dutch to run straight for Palembang.

Seven equipped warships were also put into battle for the first time, followed by five frigates. Five merchant ships scuttled and blocked the waterway 500 meters from Palembang, leaving only an opening for the ships to pass through.

The goods in the merchant ship are only moved out of the valuable ones, and all the other less valuable goods are sunk to the bottom of the water and salvaged after the war, but some things enter the water, which is naturally useless.

However, these merchant ships can still be used if they are picked up and repaired.

The ten merchant ships and five frigates were moving at a rapid pace, and in order to make them faster and reach the fork before the Dutch arrived, the soldiers on the merchant ships kept throwing their goods into the river to increase the speed of the merchant ships.

Although it was impossible for the Dutch to continue their journey during the night, time was still pressing.

Fortunately, when they reached the fork before nightfall, they did not encounter the Dutch, and the ten merchant ships took refuge in the small waterway, where the water was clear and turquoise, and the banks were quiet forests.

The two frigates stayed outside to watch out of sight, and once they spotted the Dutch, they were out of their sight, and then took refuge in the waterway, where they could be gagged when the Dutch had passed.

The river outside was wide, and all ten merchant ships had to be scuttled to be completely blocked.

…… This time, the Dutch gathered 32 warships and rushed into the Mussi River, so they were naturally sure of victory. According to their thoughts, in the river, those damn pirate ships would never have a speed advantage.

As long as you don't have an advantage in speed, you can engage in melee battles with these pirates in the river. If you succeed in creating a scuffle, you can annihilate these pirates in one fell swoop.

If they can't cause a scuffle, then they can also withdraw from the Musi River.

Wen Bangliang, on the other hand, thought of a plan to block the mouth, and while blocking the mouth, he also asked people to prepare fireboats, and when the Dutch were blocked in the river, they would release the boats in one fell swoop and burn their warships to the ground.

It can only be said that the Dutch are very naïve, and Wen Bangliang's strategy is too vicious.

The Dutch drove all the way down the Musey River and anchored at a bay at night.

The next day the Dutch continued upstream, and at noon they passed through the fork and did not find the boats hiding in the small waterway, but sailed straight by.

"It's over, they're over."

"Wait, don't gag so early, it's still too late."

The captains of the ships, who were hiding in the waterways, were very calm, and waited for half an hour after the Dutch had passed before they went out to reconnoitre, and when they saw that there was no trace of the Dutch, they went back to inform them.

Ten merchant ships sailed out of the waterway one after another, came into the river, and began to dig ships and plug the holes.

The Mussi River was wide, but the depth was not shallow, and these merchant ships sank, and it was almost impossible for the Dutch warships of large tonnage to pass through, and those clippers who used oars could pass.

It took them two hours to scuttle all ten merchant ships, and the marines on the merchant ships began to build improvised batteries on the high ground on the shore to block the banks of the river so that the Dutch would not move the merchant ships underwater.

…… Around three o'clock in the afternoon, the Dutch finally saw Palembang.

While seeing Palembang, on the river in front of them, I also saw seven warships lined up, facing them.

"Rush up and destroy them." The Dutch commander saw the seven warships in his eyes with rage, they were all theirs, these damned bandits from the Far East.

The Dutch's usual way of melee is to rush directly into the enemy ships, disrupt the opponent's formation, and then start a melee, which is better to start a melee in the river, although it is impossible to put thirty-two warships into battle at one time, but as long as it is a melee, they Dutch have the confidence to win.

The Dutch warships formed a pointed formation and rushed towards the seven warships in the distance. The shore defense artillery at the head of the city was covered by things, which made the Dutch feel very relieved, although they could see that it was artillery, but according to their thoughts, the power should not be too great, and after entering the melee, the artillery on the fortress could not be fired.

Soon, the Dutch warships rushed to a distance of six hundred meters from the seven warships.

Suddenly, a warship in front of it 'clanged', and the hull of the ship shook suddenly, and it froze in place, and the Dutch sailors on board were almost shocked and fell to the ground.

"Hit the rocks?"

Everyone's faces were stunned, and then they looked left and right, only to see that the other warships that rushed up were also stranded in place.

Only one warship on the side passed smoothly.

There is only one channel in the entire river.

Worst!

Many Dutchmen, even sailors, could see that they had stepped on the trap.

Sure enough, when the passing warship had traveled about 50 meters, suddenly the seven warships in the distant fortress opened fire.

I saw that the seven warships were aimed at the Dutch warship that rushed in, and the shells rained down on the hull and deck of the warship.

Explosions continued one after another.

The warship was bombarded, and after a few clicks, it disintegrated with a bang.

The artillery of the fortress was even more perverted, and the huge shore defense cannon showed its hideous face, and there were several loud bangs, and huge shells flew sideways.

I saw a shell directly drill into the waterline of a Dutch warship, and with a bang, a huge hole was blown open at the waterline, and the drinking water continued to pour into it, and the whole warship slowly sank.

Other shells fell on the decks of other warships, and the lethality was simply incomparable, and the 260 mm caliber cannonballs were a big hole when they exploded.

However, there were only five shore defense guns on the bastion. The other shells were all caliber 125 mm and 75 mm in caliber, and although the lethality was not as strong as the coastal defense artillery, it was superior in number, and it bombarded down wildly to form dense firepower.

"Retreat, retreat."

The Dutch were blinded, and the idea of retreating instantly came to mind. On the more than 30 warships, there were burning flames everywhere, and the Dutch sailors on board began to put out the fires and plug the leaks while retreating with their sails. The Dutch sailors possessed more seafaring skills than their Shandong counterparts, and in such a chaotic situation, they were still able to deal with them calmly.

It's just that although the river is spacious, more than 30 warships are crowded together, but they are blocked in front and back, and they can't turn and retreat for a while.

Rockets continued to be fired from the city, tilting into a crowd of Dutch warships.

And the head of the city and the seven warships were still constantly shelling the Dutch, and the shelling frequency was very high, basically they didn't need to aim, they could just bombard the front.

Two shells per minute!

It took almost two minutes for the Dutch to turn and retreat, with four shelling and a rain of thousands of rockets in between.

The fire ignited in an instant on the Dutch warship, which fled with smoke and embarrassment.

The eight Dutch warships could not turn around, and continued to sink with a grunt, and under the fierce artillery fire, these eight warships were sunk on the spot.

The other warships were on fire one by one, and five or six of them had already ignited an inextinguishable fire, but the ship was still drifting down.

The Dutchman on the boat jumped into the water like dumplings, without the slightest hesitation.

The Dutch warships in front of them saw such a large fire rushing towards them, and one by one they desperately fled downstream, and when they finally fled to a river bay, the burning ships were huddled together and did not continue to drift down.

The embarrassed Dutchman finally breathed a sigh of relief.

At the same time, the Shandong robbers behind did not chase after them, and they couldn't help but feel the feeling of the rest of their lives after the robbery. The commander of the fleet, who came up with the strategy of rushing into the Musi River to eliminate the robbers, was scolded as a pig's head in his heart at this moment.

But they left behind their original support, and since they came to East Asia, the Dutch, who have had a huge appetite and are arrogant, are now dejected and scolding their mothers.

Soon, the warships were assembled.

As soon as the commander of the fleet counted the losses, he immediately wanted to cry without tears. Sixteen warships were lost, exactly half. Of the remaining sixteen ships, five were severely damaged, some of the sails were burned to the ground, and some of the hulls were punched out of many large holes, but fortunately they did not hit the waterline, and they could not sink for a while and a half, and the remaining eleven ships were damaged to varying degrees.

The commander began to order the ships to repair their sails and leaks, and continued to drift downstream.

If you get over, it's not fun.

The Dutch, who had more than 30 warships, still dared to play melee with the Nanyang detachment, but now that they have lost nearly half of their warships, they have no such confidence.

What they don't know is that the roadblocks are waiting for them to appear......

(To be continued)