Chapter 3565
Chapter 3565
Chapter 3565
There are currently four independent army battalions stationed in Beimen Port, plus about thirty naval ships, and some logistics and engineering troops, totaling about four thousand people.
It seems like a lot, but it is impossible for all these troops to be deployed in the next battle. According to the practice of previous combat operations, at least a quarter of the troops must be left behind at Beimen Port, one to protect the first batch of more than a thousand immigrants who moved here, and the other to ensure that there are rotational reserve troops available for combat operations.
Taking into account the time limit imposed by the superiors on this combat mission, the participating troops can only be transported to various islands to fight separately. By then, supplies and heavy firepower support may not be able to be relied upon, which will undoubtedly greatly weaken the combat effectiveness advantage of the participating troops.
But Zheng Agui also understood that military orders were as heavy as a mountain. Since the superiors had issued a combat mission, he could only do his best to execute it. While Xiao Zhengyang was explaining the task allocation, Zheng Agui was already thinking about what combat supplies his company needed to replenish.
As a unit with relatively rich combat experience among the garrisons in the Luzon region, the Bangui Battalion was eventually assigned to the western end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, responsible for the search and clearing operations on three of the islands.
Three islands may not seem like a lot, but these islands are not small islands that can be visited in a day or two. The largest island, Sumbawa Island, is about 500 miles long from east to west and about 150 miles wide from north to south. The smallest island, Sasak Island, is about one-third the size of Sumbawa Island.
According to the intelligence from the Military Intelligence Bureau, in addition to the Spanish colonies, there are also a large number of indigenous people on these islands. These indigenous tribes, which had been suppressed by the Spanish, would probably not treat the Hai Han people, who are also outsiders, in a good way.
However, Xiao Zhengyang set a time limit of only thirty days for the Bangui Camp.
"Within thirty days, I want you to completely wipe out all traces of the Spanish on these islands. If you encounter civilian resistance, the commander can deal with it on his own. You don't have to take prisoners as the goal of the operation."
Xiao Zhengyang's words were very straightforward, he almost said the words "kill without mercy".
In previous battles with the Spanish, the Hai Han army would often persuade the enemy to surrender when they had an absolute advantage, in order to reduce losses and consumption. But since a time limit was set for this operation, combat efficiency must be prioritized.
Compared with directly destroying the enemy, persuading them to surrender and capturing prisoners takes more time, and the captured prisoners have to take up precious sea transport capacity to be transported to the rear, which is obviously not suitable for this combat mission.
Juan, who was standing behind Xiao Zhengyang, did not change his expression at all. The life and death of the Spanish colonists did not seem to have any impact on him, a Hispanic Hai Han man.
Zheng Agui secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Among the wounded soldiers in his company, there were two who had tried to persuade the enemy to surrender in the previous battle, but were instead ambushed by the enemy when they saw an opportunity.
Since his superiors have changed their tone this time and no longer require that prisoners be captured alive, he can let his men do their work freely.
The mission areas assigned to other battalions were no less difficult to clear than the Bangui Battalion where Zheng Agui was stationed. These islands were all at similar latitudes and had similar environments, so they were treated equally.
Each battalion started the operation at roughly the same time. Xiao Zhengyang's goal was to make it difficult for the enemies on each island to rescue and transfer each other. Xiao Zhengyang finally announced his own plan and would act together with the Bangi Battalion. Zheng Agui didn't know whether this was related to the successful cooperation two years ago, but he was sure that Xiao Zhengyang was his benefactor, and he might be able to take advantage of him and gain some great merit from this mission.
After the meeting, Xiao Zhengyang asked the officers of the Bangi Battalion to stay. Since he was going to act with the Bangi Battalion, he naturally had to communicate with these battalion and company-level officers in advance.
"I have seen the combat effectiveness of the Bangui Battalion two years ago, so I will choose to cooperate with you this time, and I hope you can cooperate with my command. As for military merit, as long as you can do your best and achieve the combat objectives, I will definitely ask the Ministry of National Defense for rewards for you after the war."
Xiao Zhengyang's opening remarks were brief. Everyone in the Bangji camp did not dare to neglect them and expressed their determination to do their best.
In fact, Xiao Zhengyang didn't have many choices about which troop to command personally, and could only choose a troop that he was relatively familiar with.
Among the various troops that set out on this expedition, the real ace armies of the Luzon region, such as the Marine Corps to which Xiao Zhengyang used to belong, the Manila Independent Battalion known as the Luzon Guards, and the Mountain Battalion known as jungle experts, are now serving in another team led by Jiao Fei.
Although the troops he took over the command of at Beimen Port were front-line combat troops with actual combat experience, they were not yet elite enough.
Xiao Zhengyang thought that this was a test deliberately arranged by his father Xiao Liang to see if he could command these troops to achieve good results. He also faced the challenge head-on and cut the combat period in half from two months to thirty days, in order to complete the clearing operation in the area he was responsible for before Jiao Fei.
Xiao Zhengyang also knew that just relying on his status as a "second-generation rich man" would not make these officers serve him wholeheartedly. It was necessary to give them certain benefits and hope to inspire their enthusiasm.
"There is some information that I did not announce at the meeting just now. However, this information is related to the area we are responsible for this operation, so I will not hide it from you."
"According to intelligence, a Spanish armed fleet of a thousand men escaped our previous pursuit and is most likely hiding in a bay in this area. If we can destroy it, the Spanish's naval mobility in the area south of the Banda Sea will be greatly reduced."
"In addition, there are at least seven to ten Spanish colonial settlements in this area. Our actions will definitely yield considerable gains. There is no need to worry about making a wasted trip."
Everyone in the Bangui camp was delighted. With so many settlements, that meant a lot of military exploits! As for the extent to which the local Spaniards were armed, that was a secondary issue.
Zheng Agui asked, "Sir Xiao, but in a sea battle, our Bangui Battalion has limited role to play, and the number of warships that Beimen Port can mobilize is limited. Can we really stop the Spanish fleet at sea?"
Xiao Zhengyang smiled and said, "The naval battle you are worried about may not happen. The ships of that fleet were severely damaged in the previous battle. They are hiding there and trying to repair them. If we can arrive in time and destroy the enemy ships near the coast, they will not be able to escape again."