After January, the army assembled and officially prepared to encircle and suppress the red-haired thieves.

This month was actually for the Red Flame Army to adapt to naval warfare.

After all, the Red Flame Army is only an army and has no experience in naval warfare.

And after these months of preparation, the Qingzhouwei Shipyard has sent the first batch of warships over, which is just barely enough.

This month, the Red Flame Army is training for naval battles.

However, the effect is not ideal.

Because after all, even Zhou Tong didn't have any experience in naval warfare before.

Well, coach Jia Huan didn't either.

Therefore, this time, Jia Huan also dispatched 12,000 escorts from Haitian Island, and they were going to join forces with the Red Flame Army.

In Jia Huan's introduction to the Red Flame Army, he said that the escort team was a rebel army.

They are indignant at the evil deeds of the Red Thieves, so they are willing to assist the Red Flame Army in attacking the Red Thieves base.

The Red Flame Army is a layman in naval warfare, and on the sea, it will definitely not be able to defeat the red-haired thief.

If you want to exterminate the red-haired thief, you must use the power of Haitian Island.

Since this is the case, Jia Huan simply took the initiative to put the power of Haitian Island in the light and defined them as the rebel army.

In the report to the imperial court, Jia Huan will also take the initiative to mention Haitian Island.

It is estimated that Haitian Island will also receive rewards and rewards from the imperial court.

And then if the red-haired thieves find their army in advance, in case they take the initiative to launch an attack on the sea.

Then the Guardian will be the main force to snipe the Red-Haired Thief.

Because the warships on the side of the convoy were all equipped with steam engines and propellers, and were equipped with shells made of new gunpowder.

Both mobility and artillery range far surpass the red-haired thief.

It can be described as a complete red-haired thief.

The two armies met and soon came to the sea area of the red-haired thief's base.

At this time, the red-haired thief finally sensed the attacking enemy.

This made them frightened and angry.

Who are they? They're serious businessmen - no, at least half the time, they're fearsome pirates!

They are known as the Red Devils!

They have always made others feel frightened, but now someone dares to take the initiative to provoke them and break ground on Tai Sui's head?

Of course, there is also fear and fear in their hearts.

They only attacked a coastal city in Great Xia, and the second time they were broken and sunk in the sand, and were made dumplings by the officers and soldiers of Great Xia, and the 10,000 soldiers sent out were almost completely wiped out.

The reason why it is used almost is because there are still a few red-haired thieves who have escaped by chance.

But the number is only a pitiful dozen or so.

This is not much different from the total annihilation of the army.

They were afraid that the ships that came this time would be the officers and soldiers of Great Xia.

They had no previous experience in fighting with the Great Xia Navy, and they did not know the strength of the Great Xia Navy's naval warfare.

But the red-haired thieves did not intimidate, they still decisively sent their navy, ready to defend themselves against the enemy, and annihilate this invading army on the sea.

After all, naval warfare is their forte.

Soon, the red-haired thief sent out two large ships, five medium ships, fifty small ships, and a navy of 10,000 troops.

Prepare to annihilate the incoming enemy on the sea.

The number of red-haired thieves' army is not only 20,000 as detected by Great Xia.

Rather, it ended up being nearly 30,000.

Therefore, after they sent 10,000 navies, there were still nearly 10,000 soldiers left on the island to protect the safety of Hongmao Island.

On the Great Xia side, the navy led by Qin Huaiyu was in front, and the fleet where the Red Flame Army was located was far behind.

The main force of this naval battle was the escort team led by Qin Huaiyu, after all, the Red Flame Army did not have the slightest experience in naval warfare, and their battlefield was in the island attack battle.

On the sea, the ships of the red-haired thieves quickly met the escort led by Qin Huaiyu.

These red-haired thieves have a wealth of experience in naval warfare.

Their ships move across the sea, and as soon as they are within their range, they can quickly adjust the position of their ships at any time.

Aim the guns at the enemy ships and launch a heavy artillery fire on them.

The march of their warships took a route that would perfectly fulfill their tactics.

They work well together, after all, they've done it too many times.

Come on, the enemy ships will soon be within their range.

As soon as they are within range, they must let the enemy know how powerful their artillery fire is.

And at this moment, they were shocked to find out.

The enemy warship turned the battleship sideways at this moment and aimed its guns at them.

This made the red-haired thief laugh out loud while being stunned.

What does this inexplicable enemy army want to do?

Could it be that they are here to be funny?

Do they think that this will allow them to sit back and wait for our fleet to advance into their range on its own initiative, and then they will have a chance to fire first?

If that's the case, then it's a pity to say that the other party is too naïve.

It's the sea, and they're not just going straight ahead.

On the side of the red-haired thieves, there was no need to command at all, and their ships soon began to sail in a side direction.

Naval battles are fought for mobility.

It takes time for a ship to make a U-turn on the sea.

Just avoid the direction of the opposing artillery fire and come within range before they have time to turn around and aim at them again.

Then attack first, then they can firmly take the initiative.

In the eyes of the red-haired thieves, the invading navy this time is completely a newcomer to naval warfare, and they do not have rich experience in naval warfare.

They can easily beat each other.

However, the next moment, something shocked the red-haired thief happened again.

Seeing that they were about to turn, the other side seemed to be annoyed and angry, and they actually opened fire!

Almost all of the red-haired thieves laughed heartily.

Is the enemy army that came out of nowhere on the other side really here to be funny?

Don't they know that in naval warfare, artillery shells are a very precious strategic resource that cannot be wasted at will?

The distance between them has long exceeded the range of each other.

What is the use of firing a cannon like this, except to vent their anger and show their incompetence?

Rumble!

Rumble! Rumble!

The next moment, the cannonballs on the opposite side fell densely around their battleship.

Some exploded in front of or behind their warships, or on one side, setting off huge waves.

The violent ups and downs make their boats drift with the waves in huge waves, and they may roll over at any time.

And some of the shells simply hit the battleships in their ranks.

The violent explosion caused the battleship to be directly blown open a big hole, or simply directly blown in half or three or four halves.

And either way, the fate of the battleship is the same, that is, it will soon sink in the sea.

Just one round of artillery fire on the opposite side cost them at least five or six warships.

This situation made all the red-haired thieves begin to panic and panic.

They shouted God in their mouths, and they couldn't believe why the artillery fire on the opposite side had so far range, almost twice the distance they had.

The artillery on the opposite side has a super long range, how will this battle be fought next?

The red-haired thieves have been through too many naval battles, but they have never encountered such a situation.

In the past, their guns were always sharper, and the range of their enemies was always suppressed by their range, and even their enemies did not have guns at all.

It was the first time they had encountered a situation where their range was suppressed by the other side.

Luckily, their commander, Thomson, had a wealth of experience in naval warfare and a big heart.

He decisively commanded the fleet, approaching enemy warships at all costs, and then they engaged in close combat.

Artillery can be far, but not close.

Once they get close, the opponent's artillery will lose its range and power.

And in hand-to-hand combat, they can use their vast combat experience to destroy the enemy.

And in the process of quickly approaching the other side, it may continue to suffer several rounds of artillery fire from the other side.

But that's the price they have to pay.

And the artillery coverage of this era is not high, and they will pay the price of sinking a dozen to dozens of warships.

The price is undoubtedly very high, but they have to pay it, otherwise they will not find the slightest chance of winning.

Next, under Thomson's command, the red-haired thief's battleship approached the opposing warship at full speed and tried to launch a boarding battle.

At this time, on the side of the escort team, Qin Huaiyu, as the commander-in-chief, saw through the intention of the red-haired thief.

He quickly commanded the convoy's warships to begin to retreat, widening the distance between the two sides.

Qin Huaiyu also has a wealth of experience in naval warfare, perhaps not as rich as Thomson, but at least commanding a naval battle of this scale is not a problem at all.

And after Qin Huaiyu came to the escort army and saw the range of the escort army's artillery and muskets, as well as the speed of the battleship loaded with steam engines and propellers, Qin Huaiyu was completely stunned.

The range of this artillery is also amazing? And the speed of the steam battleship is even faster to the extent of flying.

Qin Huaiyu felt that a steam battleship loaded with an artillery with an amazing range was an invincible existence in naval battles.

I can't ask the enemy if he can't run, can't catch up, can't fight, and is left with the passive part of being beaten.

In this case, how to lose?

As soon as the convoy retreated, Thomson on the opposite side was also overjoyed when he saw this.

If the other side does not retreat, even if they do get close, they will face the end of a bitter battle.

In the end, it is very likely that they will end up with a lose-lose situation, or even if they will eventually lose, after all, they have lost more so far.

But now, the other side has retreated.

I have to say that the other party is really a novice in naval warfare!

When you meet on a narrow road, the brave wins!

If you choose to retreat at this time, morale will inevitably be greatly reduced.

As long as they bite each other tightly, and then avoid the enemy's artillery fire, they keep getting closer to launch a counterattack.

In the end, they will be victorious.

Thomson had commanded many such naval battles, and he was extremely familiar with such methods of warfare.

Soon, however, Thomson was stunned once more.

What he never expected was that the speed of the opponent's battleship was much faster than theirs.

The opponent pulled a little distance, and then took a position outside of their range.

Then there was a barrage of bombardment on their warships.

This scene directly shocked Thomson.

He couldn't accept that reality.

Why is this happening?

Why is the speed of the opponent's battleship so fast?

This is completely counterintuitive.

The second round of artillery fire from the convoy covered it again, and once again sank seven or eight of the red-haired thief's ships.

Don't look at the fact that it took two rounds of artillery fire to sink more than a dozen red-haired thief warships, and on the side of the escort, it seems that they have not achieved much success.

But in fact, in this era, being able to sink more than a dozen enemy warships is already a brilliant victory.

After all, the hit rate of artillery in this era is still very impressive, which can be described as pitifully low.

What's more, the battle has just begun, and there is far from an end in sight.

At this time, Thomson, the commander of the red-haired thief, couldn't stand it anymore and had no choice but to give the order to retreat.

He knew in his heart that retreating was a terrible choice.

Because at this time, they cannot continue to maintain a perfect formation, and retreating at this time is tantamount to a rout.

Next, they will only be beaten passively, and they will have no power to fight back.

Yet he still had to give such an order.

Because in the face of the enemy, they do not have any means of counterattack.

If they continue to fight on the sea, the only way that awaits them is to annihilate the whole army.

And if they retreat, although they will also have to pay a heavy price, at least they can retain some of their living forces and retreat to Hongmao Island.

Then, relying on the topography of the island, you can deal with the invading enemy.

If they continue to fight on the sea, they will not have the slightest chance of winning.

Put the battlefield on the island, and they will at least have some life.

Next, Qin Huaiyu naturally did not give up the great opportunity to beat the water dog.

Even the Red Flame Army quickly surrounded it.

Although they were not equipped with steam engine warships, nor were they equipped with new shells -

Although it could greatly increase the strength of the Red Flame Army after equipping it, Jia Huan was unable to explain its origin to Emperor Chongkang.

And Jia Huan was unwilling to hand over the formula of the new gunpowder to the imperial court now.

But at least the Red Flame Army can chase after the red-haired thieves, quickly land on the red-haired island, and chase them after their butts.

The red-haired thieves have completely given up resistance, and they are desperately trying to escape, just wanting to escape back to the red-haired island as soon as possible.

I only hate the speed of their warships, in front of the escort warships, like a snail crawling, the speed is really slow.

If Qin Huaiyu hadn't been instructed by Jia Huan in advance, don't chase too fiercely, try to keep a distance outside the opponent's range, keep the range suppressed, and avoid casualties as much as possible.

I'm afraid that Qin Huaiyu would have already led the army to attack their camp.

Rao is so, and the warships of the Red Hat Thieves are still sinking one by one.

And this is already the result of Qin Huaiyu's great restraint.

Because Qin Huaiyu had already regarded these warships of the red-haired thieves as their private property.

If they sink too much, they will lose a lot. (End of chapter)