Chapter 1233
The Cloud of War
Chapter 1233 The Cloud of War
Tan Juren received the notice sent by Roger, quickly put down what he was doing, and rushed to the barracks to meet Roger.Although it is Roger's business to command operations, Tan Juren, as the chief executive of the region, naturally has to personally intervene in such a major event.
"What's the situation now?" Tan Juren asked immediately after seeing Roger.Unlike Roger, he has personally participated in the battle. Although he has no fear of the opponent Johor, the tension in the face of the outbreak of the war is still inevitable.This time he heard that the spies sent by Johor had been caught, and he had a premonition that a conflict was about to break out.
"All recruited. This team is all spies from the Johor Army. Their purpose of infiltrating Xingdao is to find out the deployment status of our army." There is no more valuable information, let alone when the high-level officials in Johor intend to take action."
"That's it?" Tan Juren would not think that Luo Jie sent someone to notify him, just to explain these few words.If Roger didn't get some key information, he could send a copy of the statement to himself for review.
Roger retreated from his subordinates, and then pointed out the key point to Tan Juren: "According to the confession of the captives, it is indeed certain that the British East India Company is behind the scenes. The information given to us by the Dutch should be credible.",
"Then besides providing them with weapons, what other tricks do the British have?" Tan Juren calmed down when he heard the news. Before that, there was related news that the British might intervene in this matter, which was expected. status.But Roger specifically mentioned this matter, there must be more discoveries.
Roger responded: "The British also sent soldiers into Johor to help them train new troops using firearms."
Tan Juren said: "This...isn't it a surprise? Since the British provided weapons, they will definitely provide follow-up services."
"You're right." Roger nodded and said, "However, the British sent too many people to Johor. I have reason to suspect that they might want to directly intervene in the war at the right time."
"How many people did they send?" Hearing what Roger said, Tan Juren's curiosity also came up.
"At least 500 people. This is the number given by the captives." Roger gave a number that sounded a bit exaggerated.
Annan was the first country to conduct comprehensive military cooperation with Haihan. The military base established by Haihan on the Tushan Peninsula in Annan was mainly used to train the new army for Annan to use firearms.Feng Annan and Mu Xiabo, two Haihan generals, had successively served as chief instructors at Tushan base, and now many senior officers in Annan's army were apprentices under the two of them.The military assistance provided by Haihan to Annan also laid a solid foundation for the two sides to form an alliance later.
But with such a close relationship between Haihan and Annan, the number of instructors sent to Tushan Base in the name of military observers was no more than a few dozen at the time.Moreover, with Annan's national strength, the establishment of the new army was only about a thousand people in the early stage. The national strength of Johor is far inferior to Annan's. The size of the troops that can be equipped with new weapons will only be smaller. How can we need too many instructors?
"500 people? This is probably not military aid, but a direct garrison?" Although Tan Juren is not a military expert, he is well-informed after all, and he can immediately understand what this number means.
Roger nodded and said: "The British may not be willing to just act as the mastermind behind the scenes, and plan to go out and operate it themselves."
"You are very courageous!" Tan Juren exclaimed, "Aren't they afraid of getting into trouble if they do this?"
"If you haven't been beaten, how would you know it hurts?" Roger had a trace of expectation on his face. He didn't feel afraid of the British's attempt, but instead aroused his interest.
In Roger's view, Johor's military strength is very limited, and it is not enough to cause too much trouble for Haihan, but if he can face the British face to face, Roger will cheer up and deal with it seriously.After all, he chose Xingdao to be stationed here, not because he intended to be the Emperor of the Land Reclamation Corps here, but because he wanted to find opportunities to fight foreign armed forces and exchange military exploits for higher status and power.Johor's strength is weaker. If the British are the opponents, the sense of accomplishment after winning must be much stronger.
"But the British are in the Far East, are there really so many people?" Tan Juren was not in a hurry to get excited with Roger, and he thought of more detailed questions.
The operation methods of these Western countries in the Far East are almost all through the so-called trading companies to carry out colonial activities, because the distance is too long, the number of citizens who can come to the Far East from their homeland is very limited, and often a colony point is only a few Hundreds of people.Like the Netherlands, an old colonial power that has built a city on Java Island for many years, the real Dutch in Batavia are only a few thousand.The British strongholds are far away from here on the Indian peninsula, and it is unlikely that there will be too many armed personnel who can be deployed to the South China Sea. It is undoubtedly necessary for the British to deploy hundreds of people in Johor to perform tasks that are not absolutely certain. It takes a lot of determination.
Roger immediately revealed the answer: "Of course not all of them are British, there should be mercenaries they recruited from various colonies, I think it would be good if the real British accounted for one-tenth of them. "
Roger's guess is obviously much more reasonable. The influence of the British in this area is extremely limited, and the risk of investing too many people at one time is too great. However, if a large number of mercenaries are used, it will indeed solve this problem. effective solution to the problem.With the financial strength of the British East India Company, it would definitely not be a problem to arm hundreds of mercenaries. Even if all these people were lost, it would not cause the British business situation in Asia to be damaged.
Luo Jie didn't wait for Tan Juren to respond, and then changed the subject: "But we can't ignore the existence of this group of people. I won't be afraid even if the army of Johor comes by a few thousand, after all, it is difficult for them to quickly But these mercenaries are not necessarily, if they are musketeers trained by the British, then we still have to be careful."
Tan Juren understood that this was the real reason why Luo Jie asked him for an interview, so he asked straightforwardly: "Then how do you need my cooperation?"
Roger replied: "Based on the current information, I can't judge the main attack direction that the opponent may choose for the time being. Just waiting for the opponent to touch the door is not an option, so I plan to do the opposite and take the initiative Find out the situation of the opponent's troop deployment on the opposite side of the Johor Strait, and collect first-hand intelligence."
Having said that, Roger paused for a moment, and then continued to explain his purpose for coming to Tan Juren: "I plan to lead the team myself, so I need you to take command while I'm out."
"You lead the team yourself? Go to Johor? Is this too risky?" Tan Juren immediately expressed doubts: "Johor is a strange area for us, can't we send your capable personnel to carry out this task? "
"Of course it's okay to send men down, but they are not the supreme commander here, I am. I need to have a clear judgment on the situation in Johor before I can make targeted deployments. No matter how detailed the information given by others is It won't be better than my own eyes." Roger had obviously made up his mind, and he didn't waver in the slightest because of Tan Juren's doubts.
Tan Juren saw that this road was not going to work, so he changed his angle and continued to try to explain Roger: "Then what if Johor launched an offensive just while you were away? They can choose to attack from the northern strait, and of course they can." Going directly from the sea to the south to attack the port, will you let me command your troops at that time?"
Roger replied: "You don't have to worry too much about this problem. If the Johorese are willing to go around dozens of nautical miles to attack the southern port, it will only be easier for us to deal with it. Just think about it, the northern strait is the narrowest The place is only one or two nautical miles away, and the small sampan can slowly row over, and can send as many troops as possible to Xingdao. But if the target to be attacked is tens of nautical miles away, the enemy will Will the commander use small boats? They can only use slightly larger sailboats, but the ability to project troops will be greatly affected by this, and logistical supplies will be more troublesome. Besides, we still have a few warships in the port area. The shore defense fort has a well-formed fire defense line and a depth that can retreat to the inland. If you want to break through the southern defense, how many lives can Johore fill this hole?"
Tan Juren has to admit that Roger's statement is also reasonable. Haihan has never stopped building port defenses since he settled in Xingdao. Anyone can break into it.The Xinggang port area has fortifications centered on coastal defense forts. Ten large-caliber coastal defense guns and several warships are enough to deal with general-level sea raids. There are also barbed wire fences, trenches, and bunkers in the area near the forts. In the defense-in-depth zone composed of fortifications, unless the opponent has the ability to deploy a large number of troops in the port in a short period of time and build a beachhead, otherwise it is really suspected of death if you want to attack the port directly.
Can Johor, a small country in Southeast Asia with an underdeveloped shipping industry, be able to play an amphibious landing battle that is difficult for Haihan to defend?The answer is obviously no. Even for a military power like Haihan, to launch an amphibious landing operation with a scale of [-] people, it takes a long time for the Supreme Staff to plan and cooperate with multiple combat units to implement it.Even on the other side of the desolate and inhabited Johor Strait, Roger would not dare to say that he would launch a landing battle at will, let alone the starport defense system that he had put a lot of effort into building.
Tan Juren was silent for a while before saying: "Johor may indeed not have the ability to launch naval warfare and amphibious landing warfare. What about the British? You just said that if the British want to end the battle in person, then we have to be more careful."
"The possibility you said is not completely impossible." Roger admitted that Tan Juren's concerns were justified, but he still insisted on his own opinion: "But I also said that the defense line of Xinggang should be able to withstand We have deployed thousands of soldiers on this line of defense. Do you know what this concept is? The last time the Haihan Army invested so many people in a defensive battle in the South China Sea probably dates back to the time when it helped It’s time for the Annans to guard the defense line of Zhengjiang and Hengshan. Even when the Dutch counterattacked Abunna Island in 1631, there were not so many people available for the island defense troops under Mu Xiabo. If there were thousands of regular troops, plus The complete fortifications can't even defend a port, so let's pack up and go back to Sanya as soon as possible!"
When Luo Jie said this, if Tan Juren still questioned his own strength, it would indeed be a bit too much, but out of caution, he still had to put his ugly words first: "I'm afraid that my professional level is not enough, you It’s better to leave a competent person at the port, lest if something happens, I will be in trouble if I rush around and give the wrong order.”
"Ruan Fu under me, you have met him, he is very stable, and he is also a veteran, I will keep him here at Xinggang. If there is an emergency, you can grant him temporary command." Roger agreed with this He had prepared for a long time, and immediately informed his plan.
Ruan Phu is a veteran who joined the army shortly after Haihan entered Annan. Although he is of Annan origin, he has been no different from other Haihan citizens who speak Chinese and write Chinese characters for many years.After the Annan Civil War, Haihan gained control of the four southern ports. At that time, Ruan Phu was stationed in Cam Ranh Bay as a company commander, and was later transferred to Roger's subordinates, and then came to Xingdao.Regardless of military quality or political awareness, Nguyen Phu made Roger very relieved, so most of the army troops under him were handed over to Nguyen Phu to command.
"Don't worry, I will keep in touch with you through the radio. If something happens here, I will come back as soon as I get the news." Roger patted Tan Juren on the shoulder and gave him another reassurance.
"Then you need to go out for a few days for this mission?" Tan Juren saw that Luo Jie had made up his mind and considered all aspects more thoroughly, so he no longer insisted on objecting, but seriously discussed the feasibility with him.
Roger replied: "I plan to set off during the day tomorrow, and wait until night after arriving at the northern coast to cross the strait at night. But after arriving there, how long I will stay there is not yet sure...Three days! After three days Return to Xingdao soon. If there is any other situation, I will contact you by radio."
Tan Juren continued to ask: "Then how many people do you plan to bring there?"
Roger said: "The more people there are, the easier it is to be exposed. I plan to lead one class is enough."
"Does that require naval warships to go over and provide cover?"
"The navy should stay here at the port!" Roger smiled and said: "I just went to scout the enemy's situation, not intending to go there to destroy Johor. If it is not necessary, I will not take the initiative to expose my whereabouts, so don't worry too much. "
(End of this chapter)
Tan Juren received the notice sent by Roger, quickly put down what he was doing, and rushed to the barracks to meet Roger.Although it is Roger's business to command operations, Tan Juren, as the chief executive of the region, naturally has to personally intervene in such a major event.
"What's the situation now?" Tan Juren asked immediately after seeing Roger.Unlike Roger, he has personally participated in the battle. Although he has no fear of the opponent Johor, the tension in the face of the outbreak of the war is still inevitable.This time he heard that the spies sent by Johor had been caught, and he had a premonition that a conflict was about to break out.
"All recruited. This team is all spies from the Johor Army. Their purpose of infiltrating Xingdao is to find out the deployment status of our army." There is no more valuable information, let alone when the high-level officials in Johor intend to take action."
"That's it?" Tan Juren would not think that Luo Jie sent someone to notify him, just to explain these few words.If Roger didn't get some key information, he could send a copy of the statement to himself for review.
Roger retreated from his subordinates, and then pointed out the key point to Tan Juren: "According to the confession of the captives, it is indeed certain that the British East India Company is behind the scenes. The information given to us by the Dutch should be credible.",
"Then besides providing them with weapons, what other tricks do the British have?" Tan Juren calmed down when he heard the news. Before that, there was related news that the British might intervene in this matter, which was expected. status.But Roger specifically mentioned this matter, there must be more discoveries.
Roger responded: "The British also sent soldiers into Johor to help them train new troops using firearms."
Tan Juren said: "This...isn't it a surprise? Since the British provided weapons, they will definitely provide follow-up services."
"You're right." Roger nodded and said, "However, the British sent too many people to Johor. I have reason to suspect that they might want to directly intervene in the war at the right time."
"How many people did they send?" Hearing what Roger said, Tan Juren's curiosity also came up.
"At least 500 people. This is the number given by the captives." Roger gave a number that sounded a bit exaggerated.
Annan was the first country to conduct comprehensive military cooperation with Haihan. The military base established by Haihan on the Tushan Peninsula in Annan was mainly used to train the new army for Annan to use firearms.Feng Annan and Mu Xiabo, two Haihan generals, had successively served as chief instructors at Tushan base, and now many senior officers in Annan's army were apprentices under the two of them.The military assistance provided by Haihan to Annan also laid a solid foundation for the two sides to form an alliance later.
But with such a close relationship between Haihan and Annan, the number of instructors sent to Tushan Base in the name of military observers was no more than a few dozen at the time.Moreover, with Annan's national strength, the establishment of the new army was only about a thousand people in the early stage. The national strength of Johor is far inferior to Annan's. The size of the troops that can be equipped with new weapons will only be smaller. How can we need too many instructors?
"500 people? This is probably not military aid, but a direct garrison?" Although Tan Juren is not a military expert, he is well-informed after all, and he can immediately understand what this number means.
Roger nodded and said: "The British may not be willing to just act as the mastermind behind the scenes, and plan to go out and operate it themselves."
"You are very courageous!" Tan Juren exclaimed, "Aren't they afraid of getting into trouble if they do this?"
"If you haven't been beaten, how would you know it hurts?" Roger had a trace of expectation on his face. He didn't feel afraid of the British's attempt, but instead aroused his interest.
In Roger's view, Johor's military strength is very limited, and it is not enough to cause too much trouble for Haihan, but if he can face the British face to face, Roger will cheer up and deal with it seriously.After all, he chose Xingdao to be stationed here, not because he intended to be the Emperor of the Land Reclamation Corps here, but because he wanted to find opportunities to fight foreign armed forces and exchange military exploits for higher status and power.Johor's strength is weaker. If the British are the opponents, the sense of accomplishment after winning must be much stronger.
"But the British are in the Far East, are there really so many people?" Tan Juren was not in a hurry to get excited with Roger, and he thought of more detailed questions.
The operation methods of these Western countries in the Far East are almost all through the so-called trading companies to carry out colonial activities, because the distance is too long, the number of citizens who can come to the Far East from their homeland is very limited, and often a colony point is only a few Hundreds of people.Like the Netherlands, an old colonial power that has built a city on Java Island for many years, the real Dutch in Batavia are only a few thousand.The British strongholds are far away from here on the Indian peninsula, and it is unlikely that there will be too many armed personnel who can be deployed to the South China Sea. It is undoubtedly necessary for the British to deploy hundreds of people in Johor to perform tasks that are not absolutely certain. It takes a lot of determination.
Roger immediately revealed the answer: "Of course not all of them are British, there should be mercenaries they recruited from various colonies, I think it would be good if the real British accounted for one-tenth of them. "
Roger's guess is obviously much more reasonable. The influence of the British in this area is extremely limited, and the risk of investing too many people at one time is too great. However, if a large number of mercenaries are used, it will indeed solve this problem. effective solution to the problem.With the financial strength of the British East India Company, it would definitely not be a problem to arm hundreds of mercenaries. Even if all these people were lost, it would not cause the British business situation in Asia to be damaged.
Luo Jie didn't wait for Tan Juren to respond, and then changed the subject: "But we can't ignore the existence of this group of people. I won't be afraid even if the army of Johor comes by a few thousand, after all, it is difficult for them to quickly But these mercenaries are not necessarily, if they are musketeers trained by the British, then we still have to be careful."
Tan Juren understood that this was the real reason why Luo Jie asked him for an interview, so he asked straightforwardly: "Then how do you need my cooperation?"
Roger replied: "Based on the current information, I can't judge the main attack direction that the opponent may choose for the time being. Just waiting for the opponent to touch the door is not an option, so I plan to do the opposite and take the initiative Find out the situation of the opponent's troop deployment on the opposite side of the Johor Strait, and collect first-hand intelligence."
Having said that, Roger paused for a moment, and then continued to explain his purpose for coming to Tan Juren: "I plan to lead the team myself, so I need you to take command while I'm out."
"You lead the team yourself? Go to Johor? Is this too risky?" Tan Juren immediately expressed doubts: "Johor is a strange area for us, can't we send your capable personnel to carry out this task? "
"Of course it's okay to send men down, but they are not the supreme commander here, I am. I need to have a clear judgment on the situation in Johor before I can make targeted deployments. No matter how detailed the information given by others is It won't be better than my own eyes." Roger had obviously made up his mind, and he didn't waver in the slightest because of Tan Juren's doubts.
Tan Juren saw that this road was not going to work, so he changed his angle and continued to try to explain Roger: "Then what if Johor launched an offensive just while you were away? They can choose to attack from the northern strait, and of course they can." Going directly from the sea to the south to attack the port, will you let me command your troops at that time?"
Roger replied: "You don't have to worry too much about this problem. If the Johorese are willing to go around dozens of nautical miles to attack the southern port, it will only be easier for us to deal with it. Just think about it, the northern strait is the narrowest The place is only one or two nautical miles away, and the small sampan can slowly row over, and can send as many troops as possible to Xingdao. But if the target to be attacked is tens of nautical miles away, the enemy will Will the commander use small boats? They can only use slightly larger sailboats, but the ability to project troops will be greatly affected by this, and logistical supplies will be more troublesome. Besides, we still have a few warships in the port area. The shore defense fort has a well-formed fire defense line and a depth that can retreat to the inland. If you want to break through the southern defense, how many lives can Johore fill this hole?"
Tan Juren has to admit that Roger's statement is also reasonable. Haihan has never stopped building port defenses since he settled in Xingdao. Anyone can break into it.The Xinggang port area has fortifications centered on coastal defense forts. Ten large-caliber coastal defense guns and several warships are enough to deal with general-level sea raids. There are also barbed wire fences, trenches, and bunkers in the area near the forts. In the defense-in-depth zone composed of fortifications, unless the opponent has the ability to deploy a large number of troops in the port in a short period of time and build a beachhead, otherwise it is really suspected of death if you want to attack the port directly.
Can Johor, a small country in Southeast Asia with an underdeveloped shipping industry, be able to play an amphibious landing battle that is difficult for Haihan to defend?The answer is obviously no. Even for a military power like Haihan, to launch an amphibious landing operation with a scale of [-] people, it takes a long time for the Supreme Staff to plan and cooperate with multiple combat units to implement it.Even on the other side of the desolate and inhabited Johor Strait, Roger would not dare to say that he would launch a landing battle at will, let alone the starport defense system that he had put a lot of effort into building.
Tan Juren was silent for a while before saying: "Johor may indeed not have the ability to launch naval warfare and amphibious landing warfare. What about the British? You just said that if the British want to end the battle in person, then we have to be more careful."
"The possibility you said is not completely impossible." Roger admitted that Tan Juren's concerns were justified, but he still insisted on his own opinion: "But I also said that the defense line of Xinggang should be able to withstand We have deployed thousands of soldiers on this line of defense. Do you know what this concept is? The last time the Haihan Army invested so many people in a defensive battle in the South China Sea probably dates back to the time when it helped It’s time for the Annans to guard the defense line of Zhengjiang and Hengshan. Even when the Dutch counterattacked Abunna Island in 1631, there were not so many people available for the island defense troops under Mu Xiabo. If there were thousands of regular troops, plus The complete fortifications can't even defend a port, so let's pack up and go back to Sanya as soon as possible!"
When Luo Jie said this, if Tan Juren still questioned his own strength, it would indeed be a bit too much, but out of caution, he still had to put his ugly words first: "I'm afraid that my professional level is not enough, you It’s better to leave a competent person at the port, lest if something happens, I will be in trouble if I rush around and give the wrong order.”
"Ruan Fu under me, you have met him, he is very stable, and he is also a veteran, I will keep him here at Xinggang. If there is an emergency, you can grant him temporary command." Roger agreed with this He had prepared for a long time, and immediately informed his plan.
Ruan Phu is a veteran who joined the army shortly after Haihan entered Annan. Although he is of Annan origin, he has been no different from other Haihan citizens who speak Chinese and write Chinese characters for many years.After the Annan Civil War, Haihan gained control of the four southern ports. At that time, Ruan Phu was stationed in Cam Ranh Bay as a company commander, and was later transferred to Roger's subordinates, and then came to Xingdao.Regardless of military quality or political awareness, Nguyen Phu made Roger very relieved, so most of the army troops under him were handed over to Nguyen Phu to command.
"Don't worry, I will keep in touch with you through the radio. If something happens here, I will come back as soon as I get the news." Roger patted Tan Juren on the shoulder and gave him another reassurance.
"Then you need to go out for a few days for this mission?" Tan Juren saw that Luo Jie had made up his mind and considered all aspects more thoroughly, so he no longer insisted on objecting, but seriously discussed the feasibility with him.
Roger replied: "I plan to set off during the day tomorrow, and wait until night after arriving at the northern coast to cross the strait at night. But after arriving there, how long I will stay there is not yet sure...Three days! After three days Return to Xingdao soon. If there is any other situation, I will contact you by radio."
Tan Juren continued to ask: "Then how many people do you plan to bring there?"
Roger said: "The more people there are, the easier it is to be exposed. I plan to lead one class is enough."
"Does that require naval warships to go over and provide cover?"
"The navy should stay here at the port!" Roger smiled and said: "I just went to scout the enemy's situation, not intending to go there to destroy Johor. If it is not necessary, I will not take the initiative to expose my whereabouts, so don't worry too much. "
(End of this chapter)