Chapter 3605
Chapter 3605
Chapter 3605
Li Zhencheng asked the sailor why he did not confess honestly during the previous interrogation and reveal this key information.
The sailor said helplessly that he had actually provided this information at the time, but the officer who interrogated him seemed to not believe it at all and just thought it was false information he made up in order to get away.
Li Zhencheng could understand this, because he actually had the same idea. The range indicated by the sailor on the nautical chart was probably thousands of miles away from the current war zone between the two countries, and it was impossible to describe the specific location. It seemed like a temporary fabricated story.
If he wanted to verify what he said, he would have to send an armed fleet to conduct a long-distance search along the northern coast of Papua Island, and the huge expenses incurred were no joke. If he could really find the secret port he mentioned, it would be fine, but if this was simply fabricated intelligence, resulting in a huge waste of financial, material and human resources, then he would be doomed.
Based on his vague confession, it was difficult for anyone to organize a large-scale operation for such unreliable intelligence. At least at this critical stage, it was difficult for the Luzon Army to dispatch a fleet to travel thousands of miles to unfamiliar waters to verify such groundless information.
However, for Li Zhencheng, the confession of the Spanish sailor was of special reference value, because during the escort of the supply fleet to the south, the Spanish fleet encountered appeared near the north coast of Papua Island, which was probably less than a thousand miles away from the range pointed out by the sailor.
Li Zhencheng didn't dare to conclude that the two were definitely related, but it was still a possibility. However, if he wanted to verify the authenticity of this information, he would also face the risk of being deceived by the other party.
After much deliberation, Li Zhencheng decided to list this information as a backup target. If he failed to find an opportunity to fight Spain later, he could try to find this secret port.
If we can really find this place, it will be a great achievement.
However, the promise of release for the Spanish sailor had to be postponed. He had to be sent to Manila first, and then he would be sent back home as promised after the authenticity of the intelligence was verified.
Shortly after this, Li Zhencheng met a troop returning to Beimen Port for rotation and rest.
At the celebratory party, the commander of the unit excitedly told Li Zhencheng that he had just completed a 20-day island clearing operation a thousand miles north of Beimen Port, successfully eliminated two Spanish colonial settlements, and brought back about 300 prisoners.
The clearing operation of the Lesser Sunda Islands south of the Banda Sea is now coming to an end. Dozens of settlements of various sizes that Spain spent several years building have been completely destroyed.
Although the Luzon region will not be able to move immigrants to these islands in a short period of time, the control of the region has changed hands and it is impossible to restore the previous situation.
This unit will rest in Beimen Port for ten to fifteen days, waiting for the next friendly force to come to Beimen Port to relieve the guard, and during this period, it will also take over the local defense. The infantry battalion originally stationed here will take over their place on the battlefield.
Li Zhencheng raised his glass to congratulate his colleagues, but he was not happy in his heart. He came here for military merit, but now the war was almost over and he had to perform the escort mission first. Not to mention whether he could eat meat, he might not even get a sip of soup.
In fact, this round of war is far from over. The clearing operation commanded by Xiao Zhengyang is mainly in the area south of the Banda Sea. There are not many Spanish troops in this area. The targets of the clearing are mainly colonial settlements distributed on various islands, and the intensity of the battle is not great. Sulawesi Island and the Maluku Islands north of the Banda Sea are still in a state of war. It is the main force of the Spanish fighting against the Luzon Army there.
Li Zhencheng patiently stayed in Beimen Port for another five days, and finally waited for the supply fleet that had completed its departure preparations.
There was not much cargo transported on the return trip, and most of the cargo ships were only loaded with the supplies they needed, so the speed was much faster than the way in. It took two days less to return to the waters of Mindanao along the route we came from than it did to the south.
After arriving at the designated sea area and completing the mission handover with several Luzon warships that came to meet up, Li Zhencheng finally obtained permission from the Luzon Combat Command to participate in the war. He immediately ordered to turn south and return to the combat zone.
The task assigned to him by the headquarters was to rush to the Ceram Sea and cooperate with the Luzon fleet to intercept several Spanish sailing ships fleeing eastward.
But unfortunately, when Li Zhencheng's fleet spent two days, working day and night to reach the designated location, they received a notice that friendly forces had successfully encircled and wiped out the mission target in the sea a hundred miles away.
The several tasks received in the following days were basically of the same nature. They cooperated with the Luzon Army to pursue and encircle some fish that had escaped the net, and the battle scenes that Li Zhencheng expected did not appear.
Li Zhencheng certainly didn't know that Manila, considering his status, did not want to put him in danger and deliberately arranged some tasks with relatively low risk factors, which would allow him to practice his practical skills and make it easier for him to ask for credit and rewards from the Executive Committee and the Ministry of National Defense after the war.
This approach is actually no different from Xiao Zhengyang being assigned to the Lesser Sunda Islands to clear out the Spanish colonies. Both are the most safe way to gain military merit.
However, Li Zhencheng may not be able to understand the "painstaking" arrangements of his elders. After completing a supply mission in the northern part of the Maluku Islands, he applied to the combat command via telegram, hoping to be given the Taiwan fleet the authority to move freely.
The combat command quickly replied, allowing the Taiwan fleet to move freely only in the area east of the Maluku Sea and north of the Ceram Sea, and to report the fleet's position and daily conditions via telegram every day to facilitate coordinated operations with friendly forces and arrange for the receipt of supplies.
The area designated by the Operations Command was actually the area where the Taiwan Fleet had been operating in recent days. Before Li Zhencheng led his troops to join the battle, this area had already been cleaned up, so the Taiwan Fleet had been wandering around here for many days and had only received some miscellaneous tasks, and had not encountered any large-scale naval battles.
The actual purpose of allowing the Taiwan fleet to move freely here is to continue to place Li Zhencheng in a relatively safe area.
However, there was a small loophole in the area designated by the combat command. It only defined the boundaries in the west and south, but it did not expect Li Zhencheng to take the initiative to leave the war zone.
Going east from this area, you can enter the vast Pacific Ocean along the northern coast of Papua Island, which is the location of the mysterious port mentioned by the Spanish sailor to Li Zhencheng.
Since there was no big fish to be caught in the war zone, Li Zhencheng planned to lead the fleet eastward to verify whether what the sailor said was true or not.