Chapter 1230: All Stayed Behind

Three shots missed, one struck home. This shell hit squarely at the stern, punching clean through the unlucky galleon. The cannonball flew out carrying scattered chunks of flesh and blood. After this hit, the artillery on the fort struck the ship below the waterline, blasting a large hole. The vessel began taking on water and listing — it was going to sink.

The three shells from those four heavy shore cannons that missed were not wasted. One shell snapped a Guangdong ship further away clean in half at the waist. The water column thrown up by another directly capsized two small boats. Those boats packed with able-bodied men preparing to land and fight all turned tail and fled for their lives — not one dared look back. Only two galleons remained relatively intact. They had already ceased fire, but the fort kept shooting. Two more shells landed on their decks, causing mass casualties. At this moment, however, both ships raised white flags. As they hoisted the white flags, they frantically struck all their sails.

If they had remained under full sail, the white flag of surrender would have been meaningless, and the shelling would not have stopped. Seeing this display from the enemy, both the fort and the shore batteries ceased fire. But this did not mean they relaxed — the fort and shore batteries remained ready to fire at any moment. Meanwhile, vessels of two hundred and three hundred liao began launching one after another, heading toward those two galleons.

The boats in the lead were all piled high with firewood and straw, which had been doused in oil. These were fire ships. If the enemy ships made any suspicious move, the fire ships would close in and burn them completely. Combined with the shore batteries, these two galleons faced near-certain death. The boats behind were fully loaded with household troops and sailors. The household troops wore light armor and carried long halberds and pudao; the arquebusiers and archers were in the rear contingent.

Once the fire ships pulled up tight against the two galleons and secured themselves, the situation stabilized considerably. The boats packed with household troops and sailors also began to pull alongside.

"Everyone aboard, lay down your weapons! Climb down the rope nets and surrender! Any suspicious movement, and we burn the ships immediately!" Someone below bellowed at the top of his lungs. They had worried the foreign devils might not understand, but the sailors dispelled this concern, saying there was no need to worry — any foreign devil merchant ship that sailed these waters was certain to have Chinese aboard. At the very least, there would be someone who understood Chinese. For one, they served as guides and interpreters; for another, on voyages of thousands upon thousands of li, too many men died aboard, and they had to replenish with locals.

Sure enough, not long after this shout, a reply came in a Min-region accent: "Rest assured, honored sirs below! Please hold your fire — we humble folk are coming down to surrender now!"

A Fujian accent was nothing strange. Among the great maritime gangs, whether their members hailed from Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, or even the Southern Seas, there were always Fujian people involved. Before long, rope nets were seen thrown down from the ships' sides, and figures began climbing down one by one. The people aboard fell into three types: the high-nosed, deep-eyed foreigners were the most numerous; next were the Southern Seas natives; and then there were the Great Ming sailors. Some bore wounds, some looked utterly bedraggled, but all wore expressions of profound relief. That kind of shelling was simply too devastating.

One tall foreigner, dressed slightly more respectably and wearing a strange wide-brimmed hat, was blond and blue-eyed, though the red beard on his chin was filthy. The moment he stood on the boat, he began shouting and talking. A Chinese sailor from the same ship who could understand a few words smiled apologetically and said, "This captain says there must be a military officer of their foreign kind here, so he demands some sort of treatment — something about how when two nations are at war, you don't execute envoys!"

The squad commander on the boat spat, walked up to the foreigner with his pudao, and slammed the weapon's handle hard into the man's stomach, sending him sprawling flat onto the deck. "No executing envoys? Just wait till we flay you alive!" After saying this, the squad commander signaled the Chinese sailor to translate it for everyone aboard. The sailors all turned ashen-faced and trembled with fear.

The situation on the other ship was no different, except that its captain and first mate had both been killed in the shelling. The second mate was also wounded. The entire ship offered no resistance whatsoever — not even verbal — and obediently followed instructions.

The number of vessels on the harbor's surface began to increase. It was not that merchant ships were seizing the chance to leave port; rather, the port's own boats were setting out to recover bodies and those prisoners who had not died. A few merchant ships did raise sail, but these had been commissioned by the Zhao Character Camp to tow those two foreign ships back.

Shi Manqiang and Ye Wenshu had both rushed over. The household troops and militia of over a dozen companies stood at the ready behind them. The sky had already darkened, though the distant horizon still held the lingering glow of sunset. Looking at the ghastly scene on the sea by this light, Shi Manqiang was speechless for a time. Finally, he sighed with emotion and said, "In a battle like this, martial skill and personal valor are useless!"

"Brigade Commander, of the eighteen gun emplacements, eleven are damaged. Seventy-eight men killed in action, one hundred twenty-three wounded. Twelve cannons destroyed." A household trooper behind them had already tallied the battle losses and reported. Shi Manqiang nodded glumly and said, "Collect the dead properly, treat the wounded well."

Ye Wenshu hesitated a moment, then spoke up from the side: "Invite all the shipowners and the resident merchants at the docks to the guild hall. Have them send men to the docks to inspect their own vessels and goods. Tell them we will compensate at full price."

The household trooper acknowledged and departed. Ye Wenshu said to Shi Manqiang, "Fourth Master, this naval battle came out of nowhere. Those seafarers have seen more than we have. We need to pool their wisdom, or we'll have no proper account to give Master Jin."

Shi Manqiang nodded glumly. Just then, another household trooper came to report: "Brigade Commander, we have now fished out and captured a total of one hundred ninety-two foreigners, plus eighty-three others. The companies are still searching along the coast and will not let any fish slip through the net. Brigade Commander, how should we deal with these prisoners?"

"How else? Kill them all—"

"Detain them first! Summon the Internal Guard to interrogate them. Carrying out executions to settle personal scores is a violation of military law — a grave crime! Do not act recklessly!" Ye Wenshu cut off Shi Manqiang's words, then shot a fierce glare at the reporting household trooper.

The trooper looked somewhat abashed, saluted, and left. The casualties at the gun emplacements had driven many people frantic with rage; they itched to hack the captured prisoners to pieces. This report was, in truth, a request for permission to kill. Shi Manqiang, in the heat of anger, had been about to agree offhandedly when Ye Wenshu stopped him.

"Fourth Master, Master Jin sees great use in these foreigners. Let's leave the handling to Xuzhou. Besides, this whole affair is murky — we must at least torture some information out of them." Ye Wenshu spoke with earnest gravity.

Shi Manqiang cursed under his breath, "These damned brats," then nodded and said, "You go settle the shipowners first. I'll keep watch here. Once they've tortured something out of them, I'll come over. These people weren't just blind — they came with the intent to wipe out our maritime strength. Such audacity!"

At this point, Ye Wenshu would not press further. He merely nodded, took a brief walk around the docks, and then headed back to the Cloud Mountain Guild Hall inside the dock area. That was the property the Cloud Mountain Firm operated at the port. By now, quite a few sailors from the merchant ships had come running over, but who had the mind to check their own losses? Everyone was staring at the scene on the sea — one galleon already mostly submerged, another burning as it sank. The several great cannons on the dock, gleaming under the lamplight, were also eye-catching enough.

Although Geng Mancang was responsible for trade in the Huai'an North District, he mainly focused on canal transport and tribute grain. The Haizhou port was still, for the time being, entirely managed by Ye Wenshu. As he walked toward the guild hall, he issued orders: send wine and food to the hall; do not restrict those clerks and sailors who had come to report news. But everyone who was supposed to come must come — including the personnel the Zheng and Yu families kept stationed here. Everyone was permitted to travel only between the guild hall and the docks; they could not go elsewhere. They must be watched closely, and arrests could be made if necessary.

"Have you heard? The foreign devils came with four gunboats, over a hundred cannons in total, and still couldn't gain the upper hand! Two were sunk, two surrendered. This Haizhou port is formidable!"

"This is truly extraordinary. And according to the clerks, they never even used fire ships — just bombarded them with cannons. Think about it: in our Great Ming ports, the foreign devils fear those fire ships the most. Without fire ships surrounding them, what do they have to fear?"

"Come to think of it, this Haizhou port is rather like Macau. The forts there are formidable too. Several times, large foreign devil ships tried to come raid, and every time they were blasted back!"

Everyone was talking excitedly about what they had seen and heard, all in high spirits. Some even began reminiscing about the old days.

"They say that back in the Jiajing Emperor's time, the Folangji's carrack ships tried to cause trouble in Guangzhou, only to be utterly routed when the government troops charged them!"

The topic quickly shifted, however. Those who had been to Xuzhou began talking about the rules of the salt market and the trade fair. Others discussed the customary practices at the Qingjiang Great Market. Unconsciously, everyone lowered their voices, forcing the Internal Guard agents assigned to monitor and eavesdrop to come over frequently to pour tea and refill water.

Yet what they overheard was no conspiracy or rumor. Instead, everyone was asking whether they could acquire property and lease shops here at Haizhou port. Each person remarked how easy it was to bring goods in and ship them out, how the port had no ties to the local officials and conducted business prudently and by the rules, and how there were critical facilities like the shipyards. Most importantly, Haizhou port could guarantee their safety. Even the great Li and Zheng gangs had to follow the flag-identification rules here, and even the foreign devils' carrack gunboats could do nothing against it. For doing business or for docking and resupplying, a place like this was a top-tier choice.

The guild hall's provisions were not lacking. As they chatted here, tea and dried fruits were constantly supplied, and noodles and wontons were brought in. If anyone wanted a drink, as long as they produced silver, it could be delivered quickly. Everyone was excited by the discussion, and with food and drink provided, they didn't feel the time pass. By the time Shi Manqiang arrived with his men, however, the night was deep. Many people were sprawled over the tables, asleep and snoring thunderously. Only a few were struggling to stay awake.

The moment they saw Shi Manqiang enter, before the household troops could even announce him, those few who had been fighting off sleep hurriedly shook their companions awake. The shipowners and managers in the guild hall's reception room rose to their feet in a wave, forcing smiles onto their drowsy faces as they greeted him.

Shi Manqiang smiled in response. Though he was clumsy with words, he saw many things very clearly. In the Southern Metropolitan Region and Shandong, everyone held the Zhao Character Camp in awe — be you an official, a powerful gentry, or a local magnate, you bowed your head. But here at Haizhou port, it was not like that.

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