Early the next morning, Mu Feng and the others found Zheng Bai and asked him that he needed a group of people to build a dock and camp in the rear. Zheng Bai readily agreed, and immediately allocated a thousand people to their command. However, when discussing the distribution of combat tasks in the future, the two sides had different views.

Zheng Bai hoped that the Hai Han Army would be able to assist the North Vietnamese Army in defensive operations on the mountain defense line, but Mu Feng and his wife thought that they should go directly to the rear of the South Vietnamese Army from the sea and attack their rear roads.

Feng Anan said: "General Zheng also said yesterday that a stalemate in the battle situation is not good news for your side, but to repel the attack of the rebels in the south, it is not enough to hold this defensive line, we still have to find a way to take the initiative." ”

Zheng Bai shook his head and said: "It is indeed a good idea to take the initiative to attack, but whether it is feasible also depends on the strength of the two sides." The reinforcements you have sent are no more than 1,000 troops, and even if they are brave and good at fighting, how can they deal with an enemy who is dozens of times larger? If the battle does not go well, it will be difficult for them to withdraw at that time! Even if Ruan Shun has the advantage in the battle situation now, he will not dare to bypass this defense line from the sea to attack our rear route, so the two of you should think about it again. ”

"More than 1,000 people, but your group of people in the Tushan training camp will also act with us. Mu Shabai took over and said: "Our battle plan is not isolated, and the sea ships dispatched by our side are all armed to a certain extent, and it is necessary to allow the ships to provide artillery cover near the shore, so that the troops on the shore can be withdrawn smoothly." ”

Mushaber is not bragging, the Executive Committee and the Ministry of Shipping have been constantly renovating their ships, one of the main points is to install gun emplacements on ships. After the mass production of the mechanical system and the gun mount, these 400 seagoing ships collected in the early stage were all refitted, and a reinforced base of standard specifications was installed on the deck. Of course, limited by the displacement and the original hull structure and deck arrangement, it is impossible to become a professional gunboat like the "Exploration", and at most two guns are installed on each side. The monolithic combat capability of this kind of ship is not high, but if it is formed after forming a fleet of a certain size, the firepower output should not be underestimated.

However, the tactics of infantry and artillery coordination have only been conducted in a few rudimentary exercises in the training camp in Shengli Harbor so far, and even a few high-ranking officials of the Military Police Department are not completely sure what kind of effect it will actually use on the battlefield when the time comes. As for the more advanced amphibious cooperative operations, warships covering the landing of the army, and so on, not to mention that in this era, even after a few hundred years, it is an extremely difficult combat subject, and if it is not operated well, the possibility of the troops being chaotic on their own in the course of the operation is also very great.

However, the warring zones of North and South Vietnam are close to the coast, and in addition to weapons, another obvious advantage of the Hai Han militia is the ability to maneuver at sea.

In order to avoid such a tragedy, the Military Police Department is also conducting very targeted combat training. However, in order not to panic the residents of Shengli Harbor, the training exercise was held on the Luhuitou Peninsula southwest of Shengli Harbor.

After several seagoing boats approached the beach on the east shore of the Luhuitou Peninsula, more than a dozen small boats slid by manpower quickly rushed to the front near shore and stopped one after another, and the sappers on board quickly laid wooden stakes at the bow and stern of the ships. These stakes are pierced into the shore through a hole in the guò plank to secure the boat. At the same time, the boats were connected with wooden planks, and in just about 20 minutes, several simple floating trestles were built.

The militia soldiers, armed with loaded guns, immediately climbed down from the rope nets on the side of the ship and landed in groups. The soldiers who landed first quickly formed a formation on the shore, and at the order of the commander, the sappers immediately began to build fortifications, and the musketeers formed a formation to shoot at the imaginary enemy on the opposite side. At the same time, the army guns and ammunition, which were divided into several parts, such as gun bodies, gun mounts, and wheels, were also hoisted onto floating trestles, where they were transferred to the shore by a small flatbed two-wheeled cart, where they could be assembled and ready to attack immediately.

It is worth mentioning that this two-wheeled vehicle is a multi-purpose tool specially developed by the carpentry workshop in accordance with the requirements of the Military Police Department. In addition to being able to transport military supplies on the battlefield, it can also be transformed into a stretcher truck to quickly transport the wounded, and only one strong civilian can quickly transport at least two wounded people who are unable to move. In addition, in an environment similar to a beach-grabbing operation, the landing force lacked the protection of frontal shelters in the initial stage, and it was not easy to build temporary positions. The two-wheeled vehicle solves this problem very well, as long as the car is erected, the special pole under the car is opened from the back and pressed on the ground, and the two-wheeled vehicle immediately transforms into a floor-mounted shield wall about one meter wide and about one meter five high. The musketeers can hide behind this shield wall and use their firepower advantage to shoot at the enemy.

If the opponent wants to destroy this shield wall from a long distance, he can only use heavy weapons such as artillery or trebuchets, and no matter what kind of weapon the opponent chooses, its range and accuracy will definitely be far inferior to the artillery equipped by the militia.

The carpentry workshop also used a lot of ingenuity when designing this two-wheeled vehicle, such as making the distance between the two wheels slightly lower than the width of the body, so that when converted into a shield wall mode, the effect of seamless connection can be achieved. The bottom panel of the body is made of wood and sandalwood, which increases the weight of the body for a certain distance, but the thick wooden planks are enough to resist the frontal crossbow fire, and it also has a fairly good protection against arquebus bullets at a distance of 100 meters. The wooden wheels have been consciously widened to prevent the body from sagging quickly on soft ground such as sandy beaches.

If you have to find fault, it is probably the lack of shock absorption system that will greatly shorten the service life of this kind of truck. However, this is not that the executive committee is slamming the door, but that the delivery date required by the military police department is too urgent, and it is too late to install a special shock absorbing device for the production of this kind of car. However, this is harmless, anyway, this batch of cars is only experimental in nature, and after the practical application on the battlefield of Annam, the relevant departments will definitely make further improvements to the design scheme.

The Military Police Department placed an order for 200 cars in one go, but judging from the current production schedule, it is still unknown whether the carpentry workshop can complete the delivery before the troops are dispatched. It's not that the carpentry workshop hasn't done its best, the workshop director Cai Hongzhan has not been out of the factory for four or five days, and the workers under him are working in three shifts, constantly rushing to make orders. The carpentry workshop had to complete the order not only for 200 multi-purpose cars, but also for 1,500 spear shafts, a large number of spare parts for ships, as well as the production of Type 27 flintlock butts for the musket assembly workshop, and the modification of existing ships in cooperation with the shipyard of the Ministry of Shipping.

Thirty-five minutes into the landing exercise, the first six guns had been loaded and fired their first shells. At the same time, two 50-meter-wide fortifications on the left and right of the multi-purpose trolley have also been completed, and two companies of musketeers are stationed behind the two fortifications, and the intensity of the fire is completely capable of repelling the onslaught of thousands of cold-armed infantry. Artillery was placed in the middle and flanks of the two lines of defense, which further strengthened the fire output. At this time, the fortifications built by the multi-purpose trolley showed another benefit, which could be very convenient to move with the trend of the battle situation, and fully cover the advance or retreat of your own troops.

Tao Donglai, who was standing at the bow of the "Exploration", put down the binoculars and said to Yan Chujie next to him: "The process is quite smooth, but I think the speed of action needs to be further improved, do you understand what I mean?"

Yan Chujie nodded and said: "There is no pressure from the outside world in the current exercise, if the actual landing is harassed by the enemy, the speed of the landing will definitely be much slower than now." ”

Tao Donglai said: "Our troops have no mobility advantage on land, so the landing site we choose cannot be too far away from the enemy, so it is very likely to be discovered by the enemy during the landing, so all kinds of extreme situations must be considered in advance." ”

After the basic defense line was constructed, the sappers and civilians in the rear quickly transferred all kinds of supplies from the ship to the shore. Under the orders of the commander, the sappers quickly set up two intermittent barbed wire lines along the outer edge of the shield wall to block the areas that were more easily broken by the infantry and the blind spots of the firearms troops. This kind of snake-bellied barbed wire completely borrowed from the shape of later generations, and it is very convenient to arrange and fold, as a tool to block the road, the effect is no worse than traditional tools such as the red deer barb. The only regret is that due to the limited manufacturing process and cost, it is not possible to mass-produce the kind of knife barbed wire with steel blades for the time being. However, fortunately, there was still a batch of knife barbed nets in the inventory of crossing materials, which were only used for a period of time when the No. 1 base had not yet been built in the early days of the landing, and all of them were allocated to the military police department for this big operation.

After the two lines of defense were built, the sappers in the rear began to build the wall and set up tents with great fanfare. The more walled walls used by the landing force were also borrowed from the design of multi-purpose trolleys, using a prefabricated structure, after digging shallow trenches in the ground, the walled walls were buried in rows, and the rear was resisted by poles and earth bags, which were naturally connected with the positions of muskets and artillery.

In just two hours, the landing force had completed the basic construction of the defensive line and the construction of the camp. This achievement was not the best among the contemporaneous armies, but in terms of quality, the reliability of this beachhead was no less than that of contemporaries who spent ten times as much time to build.

The bigwigs of the military and police department who visited the exercise also applauded one after another, and fully affirmed the excellent performance of the militia soldiers. Tom Wang praised from the bottom of his heart: "Lieutenant Gu really has a set of troops to lead the troops! Compared with the landing battles a few hundred years later, it can be said that the only thing we lack is a special landing craft." ”

"There's one parked in Victory Harbor, do you want to drive it across the sea to scare those monkey soldiers?" Tao Donglai quipped.

Tom Wang shrugged and said, "If the executive committee can give me all the diesel fuel in stock, then I will be happy to complete this task." ”

On January 7, 1628, the Executive Council passed a resolution announcing the imminent major military operations to the local population under the name of "the mobilization of overseas garrisons and naval exercises".

Recently, all units have been working overtime to produce military supplies, and militia soldiers have stepped up drills, which will certainly not be hidden from the eyes of those who have a good heart, and if the Executive Committee keeps silent about it, it will make the local people suspicious. And if we directly announce the use of troops abroad, it seems that there is no grandiose reason, and we can't say that the purpose of our war is to control Annam, right?

Moreover, there is another drawback that the Executive Committee has to guard against, because after the large-scale mobilization of the local armed forces, there will inevitably be a certain gap, and if this news spreads, it will attract pirates and other pretenders. Although Luo Shengdong, a bodyguard with a formal national license, was invited to come over, Luo Shengdong and his subordinates' combat effectiveness was also very worrisome, and they could only be used as a façade. Therefore, when the Executive Committee announced the information internally, it did not specify the scope of the militia group's mobilization and the location of the naval exercise, and even among the militia groups, the ordinary militia did not know the real purpose of the so-called military exercise.

As for when the truth will be released to the local public, the EC believes that it will depend on the progress of the operation. In the plan of the Executive Committee, this military operation is not only to interfere in the situation in Annam's internal affairs, but also to use the military victory to boost the morale of the people in the control area and increase the sense of identity of the naturalized people with the passage of power.

On January 10, Schneider and Li Nai returned to Guangzhou together. Li Nai really wanted to stay in Shengli Harbor, because he had already seen that the Haihan people were not joking this time, and it was estimated that they were really going to fight with a certain force outside. Of course, this combat target will definitely not be Daming, because almost all the sailors in Yazhou Water Village were moved by Luo Shengdong, and it was clear that they were going to take on the task of taking care of their families during the period when the Haihan militia was out. Li Nai really wanted to get further news as soon as possible, but his father Li Jifeng recently turned 60 years old, and he, who was the youngest son, would definitely go back to pay a filial piety, so he could only leave Victory Port in a huff. As for the business of "Fu Ruifeng" in Shengli Harbor, which is taken care of by his own subordinates, and Wei Ping, a "partner", takes care of it on his behalf, Li Nai is very relieved.

Schneider's trip also undertook another new task, that is, in the Guangzhou area, relying on the Guangzhou Office, to open a ticket number that can be deposited and exchanged in Guangzhou and Shengli Port, in order to facilitate the sea trade between the two places, the real purpose is, of course, to gradually promote the advanced financial system of the group, and slowly influence the attitude of the Ming Dynasty towards Haihan in the way of economic platform.

This plan was originally scheduled for the middle or even the second half of 1628, because the large amount of silver money must require a large amount of precious metals in the hands of the crossing group to be mobilized at any time. Since October, the Ministry of Finance has started a trial operation of the general deposit and exchange business in Yazhou with the help of the Yazhou Office. Because all aspects of Yazhou's relationships have been properly handled before this, and several fixed trade customers are also familiar with it, it is relatively smooth to operate, and there has been nothing wrong so far.

In recent months, however, the progress made in the arms trade has greatly exceeded previous expectations, and the trade in various industrial products has continued to expand in scale, with hundreds of thousands of taels of cash pouring into the pockets of the crossing group, and after this battle, the North Vietnamese side will have to pay at least 100,000 taels of "labor expenses" to the crossing group.

This time, the cargo ship that went north with Schneider was loaded with 150,000 taels of silver and 2,000 taels of gold, which was also the largest flow of silver after the crossing. However, in order to avoid attracting the attention of well-intentioned people, the Executive Committee only sent Ning Qi as a representative to see him off at the wharf.

Yu Dashan also asked for leave early that day and went to the dock to see off his son. This Schneider returned to Shengli Port to report on his work, and Yu Xiaobao was also fortunate to come back and enjoy the first family leave in his life. The green cloth gown he wore when he left Victory Port last time had been changed into satin new clothes this time, and Yu Dashan, under the persuasion of Wang Cai, finally spent "a lot of money" to buy good fabrics and make a new outfit for his son.

Seeing that his son had grown a lot in three months after going to Guangzhou, Yu Dashan was relieved and reluctant, and stuffed the sorted package into Yu Xiaobao's hand: "This is your favorite dried squid and mango, and there are three toffees in it, but it is a rare thing, your father is cheeky to ask the chief to come, save some food!"

"Dad, dried squid can be bought in Guangzhou, so you don't need to prepare it. Also, don't ask the chief for things in private, this will not have a good impact!" Yu Xiaobao said stupidly.

Yu Dashan lowered his voice and said: "The package also contains twenty yuan circulation coupons for you, when you arrive in Guangzhou, let Mr. Shi help you exchange it for silver, see if there is a suitable girl, and order your relatives as soon as possible." You also know that there are few girls in Victory Harbor, and even the chiefs have not yet been found, so we don't know when it will be our turn to go. ”

"Dad, you ......" Yu Xiaobao didn't know whether to be angry or laugh for a while.